The Evil Within
by lauren3210
Summary: This is how I would have liked season 3 of The Vampire Diaries to have gone.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Okay, so this is my very first time trying my hand at writing fanfic. I edit books for a living, I don't write them, lol. However, I was really looking forward to seeing the Ripper Stefan storyline evolve, but for me, the whole thing fell kinda... flat. So, I wanted to give it a go myself, see if I can't make the poor guy a bit more interesting for us Delena fans, you know? Speaking of which, I am a DE fan, and I have been enjoying the way they have been developing recently, and I think my fic will probably follow along the same lines (although, I'll probably get them kissing a lot sooner!). I hope you enjoy it, and leave a review - I need them because I have no idea if I'm any good at this! :)

A/N 2: I've rated this story 'M', not for smut content (as I think I'd probably suck at that, lol) but for language. But who knows, maybe if I get into it, I'll give it a go!

Disclaimer: I don't own _The Vampire Diaries_. If I did, Damon would be naked like, all the time! ;)

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><p><span>Chapter One:<span>

Elena stared at her phone. No messages. None at all. _Where is Stefan? What is going on?_ She heard Damon stirring on his bed behind her.

"Did Katherine say what I think she said?" He groaned slightly as he shifted up onto one elbow. "I have to go get Stefan," he said, trying to move to the edge of the bed. A coughing attack stopped him.

Elena moved over back to his massive bed, and gently pushed him back down. "No, Damon, you can't go anywhere yet, you're not well enough." Settling down on the bed next to him, she held out the crystal bottle that Katherine had thrown to her. "You need to drink some more of this, get your strength back up." She shivered slightly at the thought of the contents of the bottle, not because it was blood, but because of whose blood it was. She held the vial up to Damon's lips. His hand came up as if to take the bottle from her, but in his weakened state all he could manage was to brush his fingers against her wrist. Her skin tingled where he touched her, and she had to swallow against the emotions that simple touch had brought. I can't believe I almost lost you, she thought to herself.

"I have to go, I have to get Stefan and Kill that son of a bitch Klaus!" Damon said, as another coughing fit attacked him.

"We will Damon, but not yet, you need to rest. We all need to rest, to regroup." Elena picked up the washcloth and wiped the sweat off his face, studying him as she did so. He was still deathly pale, but the colour in his cheeks was already starting to come back. His temperature was starting to come down as well, and his breathing was getting stronger.

"I have to get him! This was my fault. As usual." Damon protested.

Elena leant over him. "This is not your fault, Damon." She looked him deep in his eyes. "All of this, everything that's happened, it's all down to Klaus. No one else." She stroked the hair off his forehead. "Now get some rest. Tomorrow, we'll go to work."

Damon nodded slightly and closed his eyes, but his lids fluttered open again almost immediately. "Elena, please, will you stay?" His hand shot out to touch her arm. "I just... I need to know you're safe." He looked at her, eyes full of concern for her. Always for her.

Elena nodded, and snuggled down next to him again, resting her head on his shoulder and holding his hand against his chest. I'll just stay here until he goes to sleep, she thought. There was no way she was going to be able to sleep, her thoughts were racing. _Oh Stefan, where are you?_  
>However, the emotions from the last few days got the best of her, and she drifted into sleep, feeling safer than she had in a while.<p>

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><p>Stefan looked down at the blonde girl he had just killed. He was feeling fuzzy. He knew he should feel something over the dead girl, regret, sorrow, guilt... But the things her blood did to him, all he could feel was exhilaration. He looked up at Klaus, feeling his human face return. "So, where are we going?" He asked, knowing he was not going to like the answer.<p>

"Tell me my dear ripper," Klaus said, clapping his hand on Stefan's shoulder. "Have you ever been to Europe?"

Stefan looked back at him, his face blank with shock. _Europe? Was he kidding? That would take him so far away from... something. Or someone?_ "No." He responded finally.

"Trust me my friend, you are going to love it." Klaus turned away and called to his compelled helpers, "Pack everything up. We leave before dawn."

Stefan remained standing where he was, looking down at the dead girl. He knew there was something he should be remembering, but the blood haze in his mind refused to let him see it. At least he knew that his brother was okay. There was something else he should be remembering, but before he could recall what it was, Klaus called to Stefan to come with him. Stefan took one last glance at the dead girl at his feet, then set off to follow Klaus, a small smile pulling at his lips. _Time for some fun._

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><p>Jeremy stood in the middle of the kitchen, staring back and forth at the spots where Anna and Vicky had been standing just a few seconds before they vanished. He raised his hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes and giving his head a little shake. Cautiously, he opened his eyes and looked around the kitchen warily. Nothing. Jeremy quietly padded through to the living room to check on Alaric. He was fine, fast asleep on the sofa. He wondered why he was sleeping there for a moment, before remembering with a sudden pain in his chest. Of course, he thought, Ric wouldn't want to sleep in Jenna's room, not now she's gone. Jeremy took a deep breath, put all the memories away, and walked softly back to the kitchen. He poured himself a glass of juice, his eyes constantly watching for his hallucinations to pop up again. He rolled his eyes slightly at himself, dying and coming back to life really drives you crazy. He turned back to the hallway. And noticed a woman with dark brown hair standing in the doorway, smiling at him.<p>

"Hello, Jeremy."

Jeremy dropped his juice. "Mom?"

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><p>Elena stirred in the big bed as the sunlight slowly lit up the room. She knew she was in the boarding house without opening her eyes. There were never any sounds here; vampires always move so silently. At her house, there was always something going on, Jeremy singing tunelessly with his headphones on, the phone ringing, the radio playing, Jenna crashing around in the kitchen... The memories suddenly flooded back in and Elena remembered where she had actually fallen asleep the night before. Her eyes snapped open and she looked around her, uncertain of what she would find. The big bed next to her was empty. Damon had gone. Something a bit like fear darted through her and she sat up, searching for some kind of sign that showed she wasn't alone in the big house. After a moment she heard it; The sound of the shower turning off in the bathroom. "Damon?" She called out tentatively.<p>

"I'm here," Damon replied, his voice soft. A moment later he padded into the bedroom, a towel slung around his waist.

Elena looked at him. He looked completely back to normal. His skin had regained its usual pale cream hue, and his cheeks had a pink tinge to them, a sign that he had recently fed. Her eyes roamed over his body, searching for a sign of the bite. Nothing.

Damon intercepted her look and cast his eyes down, a flush of embarrassment deepening the colour in his face. "Uh, yeah, sorry, I'll just grab some clothes," he said, misinterpreting her concerned gaze for one of mistrust.

"No, it's okay," Elena said, moving to the edge of the bed and standing up. "It's your bedroom. I need to go and get freshened up too." She walked towards the door, but stopped when Damon lightly laid his hand on her arm.

"Thank you," Damon said, his blue eyes looking into hers, bright with sincerity. "For last night... I mean-"

Elena rested her hand on top of his, curling her thumb beneath his palm and stroking it briefly. "I'm glad you're feeling better, Damon," she said, returning his gaze for what he thought might be a second too long. Then she turned and left the room.

Damon listened to the sounds she made as she worked her way up to Stefan's room. As he got dressed he thought about the events of the previous night. He couldn't remember much; everything was all tangled up and confused with his hallucinations from his time as a human. He did remember the way she had felt in his arms as they laid together in bed. He remembered how she had forgiven him and told him that she likes him, just the way he is. Nobody had ever said that to him before, not ever. And he remembered how she'd kissed him. He stopped for a moment, and ran his fingers over his lips, remembering how it had felt to have her lips pressed against his own, to actually be kissed by her. He smiled slightly, before shaking his head and laughing inwardly at himself. He was stupid to think about it; she'd only kissed him because he'd been dying, it didn't mean anything, not to her anyway. He finished getting dressed and left his room, going downstairs to make some coffee. He paused outside Stefan's room for a moment, listening to the shower running. Something shivered through him, but he turned it off and continued down to the kitchen.

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><p>Elena sat in the shower, completely oblivious to the beads of water hammering down on her. She sat there, thinking about all the things that she had lost, and all the things that she nearly lost. <em>Oh, Stefan, I need you here, where are you? <em>Katherine's words from last night came back to her. _"He sacrificed everything to save his brother. Including you." _A wave of hurt overcame her, but before she could give herself over to it, another emotion crept in. Relief. It was just like Stefan to be so selfless, it was just who he was. And if he hadn't, then Damon would have been dead by now. She didn't think she could have taken that. Not on top of everything else she had lost. Elena shook off her moment of self-pity and stood up and stepped out of the shower. All that matters now is getting Stefan back. She didn't look around the room as she got dressed, frightened that if she really took in all of his possessions that it would crack the fragile hold she had on her emotions. As she left the room however, she paused at his desk, trailing one finger lightly across his diary, laying there on the desk. _I will find you Stefan_, she promised silently, _and then we can start that life together we want so much. _She continued on out of the bedroom, following the tantalising smell of coffee, and ignoring the voice in her head that was whispering quietly, whispering about other things that she might want.

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><p>The doorbell chimed. Jeremy stopped pacing the hallway with a sigh of relief and pulled open the door. Bonnie stood there, a look of worry on her face.<p>

"What's happened? What's wrong? Are you okay?" The words spilled out of Bonnie's mouth as she stepped forward to hug Jeremy. The return embrace he gave her was quick, perfunctory. "Is it... Damon?" she asked, unwillingly. She knew that Jeremy had some sort of loose friendship with the vampire, though why she couldn't even begin to imagine.

"What? Uh, no. No, Damon's fine." Jeremy moved away and walked into the living room. "Elena sent me a message last night. Apparently they found a cure just in time."

"Oh, well, that's good, I guess," Bonnie muttered as she shut the door behind her and followed her boyfriend. "Where's Alaric?" she asked, noticing the signs of a recently slept on sofa.

Jeremy, now pacing the length of the living room, replied, "Uh, he left a while ago, said he had some papers at school he needs to grade." He laughed, once. "More like there's a bottle of whisky at the Grill that he needs to drink."

"Okay, so what's going on, Jer?" Bonnie sat down on the sofa and grabbed Jeremy's hand as he paced by her again. "Sit down and tell me."

Jeremy sighed and sat down next to Bonnie. "I – I don't know how to explain it." He said, running his fingers through his hair haphazardly.

"Just start at the beginning, and we'll go from there." Bonnie took hold of his hands, attempting to calm him down.

"Okay. Okay," Jeremy took a deep breath, then slowly blew the air out through his lips. "You remember, last night, when I told you I felt weird, different?"

She nodded, and he continued to tell her the events of the previous night. When he finished, Bonnie just stared at him in shock. "You – you saw your Mom?" she managed finally.

"Bonnie, what's going on? What's happening to me? Is it because of that spell you did?" Jeremy got back up off the sofa and resumed his pacing. "I don't understand. I've come back from the dead before, nothing like this happened then. Is it real? Or – or am I just going crazy? Bonnie? Bonnie!"  
>Bonnie was just sitting there staring into space. She mumbled something under her breath.<br>"What? Bonnie, talk to me!" Jeremy put his hands on her shoulders, shaking her slightly.

Bonnie came out of her reverie. "Consequences," she said, looking back at Jeremy. "They said there'd be consequences! But I didn't think it would be anything like this!" She stood up suddenly and grabbed Jeremy's hand. "Come on." She started pulling him towards the door.

"Where are we going?"

"Back to see the witches. We have to find out what's going on, what's happening to you."

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><p>Liz sat on the sofa in her living room, staring blankly at the wall. She was trying to wrap her head around everything her daughter had told her, but images of last night kept invading her mind. Firing her gun at Damon... Shooting Jeremy by mistake instead... Caroline trying to feed him her blood... She'd had no idea that vampire blood could heal humans. Nothing like that had ever been mentioned by the secret council.<p>

"Mom?" Caroline stared at Liz, worried that her mother had gone into shock or something. "Mom? Are you okay? Can I do something, I don't know, maybe, get you a glass of water or something..." Her voice trailed off as Liz slowly turned to look at her.

"a glass of water... w-would be nice, actually. Th-thanks," Liz replied shakily. Caroline smiled and rushed off, obviously glad to be doing something, anything, instead of just sitting there. She was still trying to understand. She had been so angry with herself, for trusting Damon Salvatore; for believing him to be a friend, maybe the only true friend she had. When Matt had told Liz everything that Caroline had told him, half of her had wanted to go and find Damon and stake him, over and over, while the other half was left reeling by the fact that her little girl, her baby, had been turned into the thing she hated most by her supposed friend! Liz continued to stare at the wall, trying to wrap her head around what her daughter had told her. Maybe Damon really was her friend. After all, if it hadn't been for him, Caroline would have died from that car crash. Of course, technically she had died, but it hadn't been Damon's fault. Maybe what Matt said was true, Caroline really is still in there, somewhere.

Caroline returned with a glass of water. "Here we are!" She placed the glass down on the table in front of her mother. "Um, Elena just sent me a message, she needs me to meet her, something to do with Stefan." Caroline looked at her Mom. "Will you be okay here, if I leave?" She bit her lip. Liz nodded. "I know-" Caroline sighed, then tried again. "I know you're still trying to figure things out. Just – will you promise to talk to me, before you do anything?"

Liz looked at her. Finally, she nodded. "Okay, I promise."

Caroline smiled at her. "I love you, Mom," she said, then walked towards the door, leaving Liz to her thoughts. As she closed the front door, she sensed someone close by, and she spun to face the porch, only to come nose to nose with Tyler."Oh, my God, do you have to sneak up on me like that?" She stepped away from him and walked towards her car.

"Sorry, I figured you'd heard me," Tyler followed her down the path. "You know, vampire hearing and all that?" They stopped at the car. "Where are you going?"

"Elena needs me. Stefan's in trouble." Caroline got into her car, then turned, surprised, as Tyler got into the passenger seat. "What are you doing?"

"Coming with you," Tyler said, doing up his seatbelt. She was still looking at him, so he went on, "Look, Damon saved my life. The least I can do is help his brother. I owe him that much."

"You owe him more than that, considering you bit him and he almost died," Caroline muttered.  
>Tyler looked down, then nodded. "I know."<p>

"Damon's not just going to forgive you, you know that too right?"

Tyler stared straight ahead. "I can handle it."

Caroline looked at him a moment longer, then sighed. "Come on then, lets get it over with." She drove through Mystic Falls, neither one of them noticing Matt standing just inside the door of the Grill.

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><p>Jeremy watched Bonnie as she knelt down on the floor in the derelict house. He had spent a lot of time here recently. They both had. Bonnie was mumbling under her breath in a foreign language, rocking back and forth slightly as she did so. Suddenly, she gasped, and the candles surrounding her flamed brighter. "They're so angry with me! They won't help!"<p>

Jeremy was barely listening to her. A t the same moment that she had gasped, he had felt a presence that hadn't been there before. Lifting his head slowly, he looked around the room. They were everywhere, women, men, all different ages, and all looking at him. "I can see them!" He whispered, looking at Bonnie. "I can see them all."

A young woman near the front came forward. "We cannot help you."

"Emily?" Bonnie whispered.

Emily looked down at Bonnie. "This is the consequences we warned you about. We cannot help you. There are no answers here. Please leave us." She faded, and the others behind her followed.

"Emily? Emily! Come back! Please!" Bonnie shouted, standing up and turning in a circle.

"They're gone, Bonnie." Jeremy put his hand on her shoulder, then heard his phone buzz. Looking at it, he said "Come on, we have to go. Elena needs us."

"Whisky? Or would you prefer coffee?" Damon asked Alaric, as he walked through the door.

"Yes to the first," Ric said, sitting down on the sofa in the cavernous Salvatore living room. "Glad to see you back on your feet."

"Yeah, about that," Damon handed him a glass, "Thanks. For not staking me. When I asked." Their eyes met, then Alaric nodded slowly. They clinked glasses and drank.

"Hey, Elena," Alaric said as she came into the room.

"Hey," she replied, then looked at Damon. They stared at each other for a moment, then Elena sat down and Damon turned towards the fire. "Thanks for coming."

"No problem. What's up?"

"Wait till everyone gets here, I'll explain then."

"I hear someone now," Damon said, turning to face the direction of the door. His face froze, then he sneered. "You have got to be kidding me!" He ran with vampire speed to the door and yanked it open. "What the hell are you doing here?" The sudden appearance of the vampire startled the young werewolf, and he tripped and fell backwards down the porch steps.

"Damon, wait, let me explain!" Caroline began, getting between Damon and Tyler.

"There is nothing to explain," Damon pulled Caroline out of the way and advanced on Tyler.

"He didn't mean it! He didn't know what he was doing!" Caroline struggled to get a grip on the older vampire, but Damon kept advancing on Tyler, sprawled on the floor.

"I warned you! I told you not to make me regret saving you!"

"Damon! No!" Elena swung out onto the porch, pushing herself in front of him. "Damon, we don't have time for this!" She pressed her hand against his chest, making him look at her. "Stefan doesn't have time for this."

Damon looked at her, struggling to get control over his impulses. Looking into her deep brown eyes helped calm him, the strength of will he saw there strengthening his own. Finally, he nodded. "We are not done with this, pup." He stared down at Tyler one last time, before striding back into the house, Elena following him.

Caroline knelt down by Tyler. "You can handle it, huh? You okay?"

Tyler hauled himself into a sitting position. "I'm fine." He stood up and took Caroline's hand. "Let's go in."

* * *

><p>Bonnie pulled her car into the driveway of the old boarding house. "Looks like Damon's back to his usual charming self," she said in disgust, as she watched the scene unfolding on the porch.<p>

Jeremy turned to face her. "Bonnie, I don't want Elena to know what's going on. With me, I mean."

Bonnie looked at him in dismay. "Jer, she's my best friend! I can't keep something like this from her!"

"Yeah and she's my sister. She's been through enough, without her having to worry about me too." He took her hand, "Please Bonnie, at least until we know what's really going on."

"Okay," Bonnie agreed, leaning forward to kiss him briefly. They got out of the car and walked into the boarding house. Everyone was there, Tyler standing with his arms crossed, as far from Damon as he could get, which was pretty far in this room. "I see you didn't die then," Bonnie tossed out to the vampire.

"And I'm sure you're just happy as a clam about that, aren't you?"

"Damon!" Elena cut across him, a warning tone in her voice, before addressing the group. "Thanks for coming, everyone."

Bonnie sat down on the couch, Jeremy joining her. "You said Stefan was in trouble?"

"Whatever we can do to help," Caroline put in from her place next to Tyler. Tyler nodded, shooting a quick glance at Damon.

"Exactly what kind of trouble is Stefan in?" Alaric asked, helping himself to more whisky, topping up Damon's glass as he did so.

Elena took a deep breath. "He gave himself over to Klaus." The reactions in the room were immediate.

"What?"

"Why?"

"Why the hell would he do that?"

"Because of me," Damon said, as all eyes turned to him. He stared across at Elena, before facing the rest of the room. "He did it to save me."

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><p>Stefan stood in the empty hangar, watching as the compelled flight attendants packed all of Klaus's luggage into the small but top class plane. He turned as Klaus himself walked in, blood smeared across his lower lip, eyes still glowing golden.<p>

"Have yourself a snack, before we board," Klaus called to Stefan.  
>"No, thank you."<p>

Klaus glared at Stefan, all jovial pretence gone. "I said, have a snack," he repeated, his voice dangerously low.

Stefan nodded, then turned to the owners of the plane, crouched in the corner of the hangar. They became even more terrified as he approached them, the woman crying, the man holding his wife and closing his eyes. Stefan grabbed the woman, picking her up and holding her close. Without hesitation he bit down on her neck, groaning as her warm blood coated his tongue. The woman's husband cried out in anguish and tried to pull Stefan away from his wife. Without stopping, without even looking up, Stefan grabbed the man by his neck and snapped it, and the man slumped to the floor. The woman now drained, Stefan tossed her body on top of the other, and turned back to Klaus.

"That's better," Klaus said, his happy facade back in place. "Didn't want you getting hungry on the flight, we need the pilot to be able to land." He walked towards the plane.

Stefan followed. "What about Katherine? I thought you wanted me to help find her." He climbed up the steps.

Klaus stopped and turned to look at him. "Actually, just having you here with me is helping," he flicked a look over Stefan's shoulder. "I have a feeling she'll eventually come to us." He disappeared inside the cabin.

Stefan stopped at the top of the stairs and looked out over the runway. In the distance he could make out a girl with long dark brown curls, gazing steadily at him. Katherine, he thought. But, for a moment, she reminded him of someone else. He turned away, entering the plane, the door shutting behind him.

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><p>Katherine watched as the plane took off. She already knew where they were going. She watched until she could no longer see it, which was far longer than any human. "I love you, Stefan," she whispered, echoing her words from all those years ago. "I will find you again." She turned and walked away slowly, but with purpose. <em>Time for a new plan.<em>


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you so much to the people who reviewed! I suddenly have a new appreciation for reviews, and feel the need to go back and review every chapter of every story I have ever read LOL. Hugs and kisses to you all!

A/N 2: I also forgot to mention in my last author's note, that I actually started writing this way back in May, just after the finale aired. But then, life and laziness got in the way :). I've got about six chapters ready to go - minus the editing - so I'll keep going until they're up. If enthusiasm for my story flags though, I won't force more on you if nobody likes it, promise!

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><p><span>Chapter 2:<span>

As Elena opened her eyes, she noticed it was still dark. The group had talked until late in the evening the night before, all of them sitting in the vast Salvatore living room. They had gone over and over the events of the past few days, but to no avail; nobody could come up with a viable plan for finding Stefan. Nobody was even sure he was still alive. They had continued talking until Damon called a halt to the discussion. He had noticed that Elena had withdrawn from the conversation, and although he spoke to the whole room, it was only her he looked at.

"While I'm sure all this chatting is eventually going to actually lead somewhere, I think we could all do with a break," he said, putting down his empty glass and moving towards the doorway. "How about we all try to come up with a plan _separately_ for a while?"

"I agree," Alaric said, standing up and looking over at Elena. "I'll drive Elena home."

Elena finally looked up at the mention of her name. "What? N-no, we need to figure out what we're going to do to find Stefan!" She looked around the room at everyone in turn, her eyes finally coming to rest on Damon. "We have to figure this out! Damon, please!"

Damon closed his eyes briefly. He hated when she pleaded with him, it was like he was hard wired to do whatever she wanted him to do. "What do you want us to do, Elena? Spread out with torches in the woods, calling to him, hoping he'll come back like a good puppy?" He knew he was being harsh, and when he saw her flinch he almost regretted saying it. Almost. "We don't know where he is. We don't know where Klaus is. We don't know what their plans are." He didn't mention the fact that they didn't even know if Stefan was alive, even he wasn't ready to hear that possibility spoken out loud. "Until we get some kind of information, there is no plan that we can make, Elena!" He looked at her while she absorbed this, then sighed and walked slowly up to her. "We'll find some stuff out, and then we can start figuring it out, okay?" He stroked her hair down behind her shoulder. She looked up at him, and the rest of the room faded away. The others, all standing up and gathering their stuff weren't even on his radar as he looked down into those tear filled brown orbs. He couldn't decide which fact hurt him the most: that her pain hurt him, or that her pain was all Stefan related. Not that it mattered. He would go to the ends of the earth to make her happy.

Alaric cleared his throat, moved forward and clapped his hand on Damon's shoulder. "I'll take Elena and Jeremy home now. Will I see you at The Grill later?"

The physical contact had broken the spell that had kept Damon tethered to Elena's gaze, and he turned to face the rest of the room again. "Maybe. There're a few things I need to do."

"Sure," his friend replied, then held his arm out to Elena. "Come on Jeremy, I'll take you too, unless you want to go with Bonnie?" he asked the younger Gilbert, not entirely sure how he should be behaving towards these kids now. He was, sort of, their almost-uncle for a while, but now he had no clue as to what kind of role he would be playing in their lives now, if any at all.

Jeremy and Bonnie seemed to be having some kind of silent conversation. Jeremy gave her what seemed to be a warning glance, before turning to Ric. "Yeah, yeah thanks. A ride would be cool," He turned back to his girlfriend, leaned down to give her a kiss on her cheek, and murmured "We'll talk tomorrow, okay?"

Caroline and Tyler were already standing by the doorway to the entrance hall. "I'm going to drive Tyler home," the blond vampire said. "If you need me, call, okay?" she said to Elena. Elena nodded, and Caroline, walked out of the house, Tyler following closely behind her.

Bonnie picked up her bag and stood up from where she had been perched on the arm of the sofa for most of the evening. "I'll go and look through some of my spellbooks, see if I can find something that will help," she crossed over to Elena and pulled her into a hug. "We'll find something, don't worry, okay?"

Elena smiled at her friend. "Thanks Bon. You're right, we will." She nodded once, as if to convince herself, then started to walk towards the door. Alaric and Jeremy followed her, and they headed out to the history teacher's car.

Bonnie, as if noticing she was suddenly alone with the vampire, turned to look at him sharply. "I know how you feel about Elena," she said, raising her chin and trying to cover the slight wobble to her voice. "I just hope this won't affect how hard you look for Stefan."

"You know nothing about me, Judgy," Damon replied, as he started cleaning up the room. "So how about you take your self-righteousness somewhere else?"

"I'm just looking out for my friend, Damon. She lost too much already, she can't lose Stefan too."

Damon put down the glasses he had picked up on the drinks table and blurred to tower over the witch. "And you think I can? He's my brother, witchy."

Bonnie looked up into the ice blue eyes currently boring into her, and was surprised at just how much emotion she saw there. It was only for an instant, before Damon blinked and eased back, the mask set so carefully in place that Bonnie wondered if she had imagined it. She stepped away and walked towards the door. "I'll text you if I find anything."

Damon nodded but didn't reply. He continued cleaning up the living room, trying to give himself something to do. It didn't work. After a couple of minutes his control cracked, and he hurled the glasses in his hands into the fireplace. "Godammit, Stefan!" he roared, before picking up the table and throwing that too. It smashed into the bookshelves and fell in splinters on the floor. Breathing heavily, he sank down into the sofa and buried his face in his hands. _What the hell were you thinking, Stefan?_

* * *

><p>Elena turned over in bed to search for her alarm clock, wondering what it was that had woken her up. <em>5:35am?<em> She hadn't slept long at all. Getting into bed well after midnight, sleep had evaded her for hours, thoughts of Stefan being tortured or possibly worse filling her head. As she tried to make herself comfortable in the hopes of sleeping some more, she heard the noise that had woken her up in the first place. Whispered mutterings were coming from the direction of the bathroom she shared with Jeremy. At first, her heart sped up and she started hyperventilating. The events of the past year had conditioned her into being scared of anything going 'bump' in the night. As she listened carefully however, she recognised Jeremy's voice. _But who was he talking to?_ Elena shifted, putting her feet quietly on the floor. Standing up, she padded softly over to her bathroom door, which was slightly ajar. Pulling it open noiselessly, Elena tiptoed into the bathroom and peered through the crack into Jeremy's room. He was standing with his back to her, looking into the corner of his room.

"Jeremy?" she called softly to him. Her brother jumped and turned to look at her. His gaze swung back to the corner of the room, and she saw his shoulders relax suddenly. "Are you okay?" she asked, stepping fully into the room.

Jeremy's eyes darted once quickly around the room, before settling back on his sister. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Sleep walking, I guess."

Elena frowned as she walked towards him. "You don't sleepwalk. Are you feeling okay?" She reached forward and placed her palm against his forehead.

Jeremy jerked his head backwards and sat down on the edge of his bed. "I said I'm fine, Elena. Go back to sleep okay?" His gaze flickered around the room again.

"Okay," Elena said, not buying is 'fine' statement, but unsure what she could do about it. "I'm going to go downstairs and get a drink. Do you want anything?"

"No thanks, I'm good." Jeremy drawled backwards towards his pillows. "I'm gonna see if I can get some more sleep." He looked up at her again, "Sorry I woke you."

Elena smiled at him as she walked towards his door. "No problem, I think I was more thrashing around than actually sleeping, anyway." She walked out into the hallway, closing the door softly behind her.

Jeremy slumped with relief. Elena coming in seemed to have scared Anna off. He looked around the room again, but he knew she had gone. The weird feeling he got whenever there was a ghost around had gone.

* * *

><p>As Elena walked down the stairs and through the hallway, she noticed the light coming from the kitchen. As she rounded the corner, she saw Alaric leaning against the island, a cup of coffee in his hand. He was staring off into space, and jumped as she entered the room, spilling some of the hot liquid over his hand. "Shit!" He grabbed a cloth and wiped the mug, then turned and set it on the counter. "What are you doing up this early?" He asked, wiping himself down and throwing the cloth back near the stove.<p>

"I could ask you the same question," Elena replied, moving over to the coffee machine to pour herself a cup. "Or have you not gone to bed yet?"

"Couldn't sleep." Alaric pulled out a stool and sat down with a sigh.

"Seems to be going around at the moment." Elena picked up her drink and joined him, studying him as she sat down. After dropping her and Jeremy off at home last night, Ric had finally gone back to his apartment. It was the first time he had stepped foot in the place since being possessed by Klaus. It had to have been hard on him. She had heard him come back just after she had gone to bed, heard him come upstairs and look in on Jeremy as he slept, before pausing outside Jenna's room. He had stood there for a while, before finally making his way back downstairs to the couch. Elena supposed they should talk about proper living arrangements. He had pretty much lived with them ever since his relationship with Jenna had taken off, so it would make sense that he stay. He couldn't live on the couch permanently though, he needed a room.

Before she could say anything though, Alaric drained his coffee and stood up. "Right. I'm gonna go take a shower, and then I guess I'll get to work." At Elena's confused look, he continued. "Damon wants me to go through some more of Isobel's stuff, see if I can find something about Klaus's past. Maybe it will shed some light on what he's up to now."

Elena stood up too. "Do you want some help?" she asked eagerly. She needed _something_ to do.

"Thanks but, it's pretty boring stuff. I'm sure you've got other things you would be better off doing." Ric smiled at her and then walked out of the kitchen, leaving Elena alone with her thoughts. She sighed and turned to put her empty cup in the sink, and jumped out of her skin as she saw someone leaning against the refrigerator.

Damon deftly caught the mug she had dropped and reached behind him to put it in the sink for her. "Careful," he admonished quietly. "Smashed ceramics and bare feet do not go well together."

"I wouldn't have dropped it if you hadn't scared me," Elena retorted, folding her arms over her chest, suddenly very aware of the fact that she was still only wearing her pyjamas. Then again, it wasn't like he hadn't seen her in them before. "What are you doing here?"

"I had a thought," he said, noting her embarrassment with amusement. He raked his gaze down and then up her body slowly, his amusement growing as he saw her cheeks flush. "I was wondering whether Bonnie could do a locator spell on vampires."

"How would I know?" Elena said, annoyed at her reaction to his presense. "Wouldn't it be better if you actually asked her?"

"The witch and I tend to work best together when we're not actually in the same room," he said, turning and opening the refrigerator door. "I was thinking maybe you could ask her." He started taking things down off the shelves, spreading them out on the work top next to him.

"Okay, I'll ask her," Elena said, watching his movements with suspicion. "What are you doing?"

"Mowing the grass," he rolled his eyes in her direction. "I'm making you breakfast, Elena, now go and get washed up and it'll be ready when you are." He turned back to rummaging around in the cupboards.

Elena tried to come up with a good reason why she shouldn't be okay with this scenario, but she was too sleep deprived to come up with a reasonable answer. She walked hesitantly out of the kitchen, and went upstairs to have a shower.

* * *

><p>Liz looked down at her daughter's hand as they walked down the street. She knew that the only reason Caroline hadn't burst into flames was because of the spelled ring that she wore on her left hand. And that Bonnie had spelled it for her. <em>Was she ever going to get to grips with all this new stuff in her daughter's life?<em> She cleared her throat before talking. She was still finding it hard to speak normally around Caroline, all her years of hating vampires warring with the truth that this was still her _baby._ "So, what are we looking for, exactly?"

Caroline stood behind her while she opened the doors to the police station. It hadn't escaped her notice that her mother's voice still shook whenever she spoke to her, but it was starting to fade. It gave her hope that they could get back to being mother and daughter again. Maybe even have a better relationship than before. The thought made her smile. "I thought that maybe you could look up on your computer database thingy, and see if there have been any crimes or whatever that might tell us where Klaus is."

Liz looked at her daughter with bemusement. "You mean, the police report database?" she asked, amazed to find out that Caroline must have at least paid attention to her at some point to know about this kind of thing.

"Sure," Caroline said, moving past the sheriff and into her office. Then she stopped and turned back, a frown line appearing on her forehead. "You have one of those, right?"

Liz smiled. "Yes. Yes we have one of those." She moved round her desk and turned on the computer. "How big an area do you want to search?"

Caroline, who had been riding high on the emotions that seeing her mom smile had given her, came back to the room with a bump. "Um... I don't know. Um... maybe like, the state?"

Liz looked up at her. "You want me to check reports from the whole state of Virginia?"

"I guess?" Caroline pulled a chair round so that she could sit closer to the computer screen. It gave her a warm feeling as she noticed that her mother didn't pull away. "I don't know, but we've got to start somewhere, right?"

Liz resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Her daughter had no idea how long a search like that might take. "Okay, the state it is." She put her fingers to the keyboard and started typing.

* * *

><p>Elena walked up the steps to Bonnie's front door and raised her hand to knock. She paused before her knuckles touched the wood, not knowing how she was going to ask her friend for this favour. Bonnie had been through a lot recently, and it was obvious that Jeremy worried whenever she did magic. But she had to find out where Klaus had gone; he was the only link to finding Stefan.<p>

Bonnie opened the door far more quickly than Elena had been expecting, considering it was still so early in the morning. At Bonnie's appearance however, it quickly became obvious that she was having just as much success with sleep as the rest of them. "Hey! Are you alright? Has something happened?" Bonnie rushed out, grabbing her friend by the arm and pulling her through the doorway.

Elena gave the witch a hug. "No, nothing's happened. Well, nothing since yesterday." She straightened and turned towards the living room, and saw the array of magic books spread out across the floor. "Are you doing some research? Practising?"

"Uh, yeah. Sort of." Bonnie pushed past her and started closing the books and putting them in a pile.

Elena bent down to help, and picked up the book closest to her, scanning the faded Latin and trying to work out what the spell was for. "'_Phasma Phasmatis...', _what does that mean?" she asked, curious.

Bonnie looked up sharply, and pulled the book out of Elena's grasp. "Uh, I'm not really sure, I hadn't looked at that one yet." She put the book at the top of the pile, but made sure to slip a bookmark between the pages to mark the place. "So, what are you doing here this early in the morning?"

Elena sat down on the couch. "Actually, I have a favour to ask."

"Uh oh. I think this will require sustenance." Bonnie placed the pile of books in the corner of the room, then turned back to her friend. "Do you want some breakfast?"

"Just coffee thanks. I already ate." Elena curled up on the couch and started picking at the loose threads in the arm.

"You already ate?" Bonnie was surprised. Elena hardly ever ate breakfast, especially this early in the morning.

"Damon made pancakes. They were actually really good."

Bonnie eyes almost bugged out of her head. "_Damon_ made you breakfast? What were you doing with him this early in the morning?"

"Well, that's kinda involved with the favour I wanted to ask you." Elena looked up at her friend.

"Okay. I am definitely going to need coffee for this conversation." Bonnie waved her hands and then disappeared into the kitchen.

Once they were both sat down on the couch with a steaming mug of coffee each, Elena took a deep breath, and began her request. "Do you remember when you tried to do that locator spell for Klaus, before he came to Mystic Falls?"

Bonnie nodded. "It didn't work though. I had nothing personal of his to help with the spell. Or any of his blood."

Elena bit down on her lip before continuing. "Could you try again for me?"

"Elena, why would you want to find Klaus? He thinks you're dead. Wouldn't it be better if he kept on thinking that?" Bonnie looked at her friend, then realised what Elena was really looking for. "It still wouldn't work. I still don't have anything of his."

Elena reached into her jacket and pulled out the crystal vial that Katherine had thrown at her two nights before. "This is Klaus's blood," Elena tipped the bottle so that the last drops of liquid remaining in the bottom gathered into a small pool at the side. "Could you use this?"

Bonnie reached out and took the vial from Elena. "How did you get this?" She took out the stopper and peered inside.

Elena told her about Katherine showing up with the bottle, claiming it as the cure for Damon's werewolf bite. She left out the bit about what Katherine had interrupted, Bonnie's expression already looked like her head was about to explode, and Elena didn't think she could handle any more information. Of course, that wasn't the only reason why she didn't tell her, but it was the only reason she allowed herself to think about.

Bonnie looked at the bottle again, then back to Elena. "I guess the only thing to do is to try." She got up off the sofa and moved over to the cabinet. "There are some maps in the hallway closet. Could you get them?" She knelt and began rummaging around for the ingredients needed for the spell.

Elena got the maps and came back to the living room, kneeling down next to Bonnie, who had situated herself down by the coffee table. She spread out the map of Virginia on the table. Bonnie leaned over the map with her hands raised slightly above it, muttering under her breath. Then she picked up the bottle of Klaus's blood, and poured a single drop onto the map, in the centre of Mystic Falls. She raised her hands again, muttering some more, and Elena caught enough to know that the words weren't in English. The drop of blood didn't move. "Okay," Bonnie said, looking round at Elena. "Either the spell isn't working, or Klaus isn't in Virginia anymore."

"Which one do you think it is?" Elena asked the witch, biting down on her lip.

"When I do a spell, I get a little click feeling, inside my head, and I think that tells me when a spell is working." Bonnie explained. "I think it's working."

"Okay," Elena replied, letting out the breath she had been subconsciously holding. "Then let's try with a bigger map." She sifted through the pile of maps laying on her lap, pulling out a big one of America.

"Alright. Just to let you know though, the results get less specific the wider area we search." Bonnie spread the map out on top of the first, and did the ritual again. Still, the drop of blood didn't move. Bonnie looked in the bottle. "We have enough left for one more try." She looked at Elena again. "There's a world map in there somewhere."

Elena searched through the pile, trying to ignore the sinking feeling she was getting. _How far away had Klaus gone? Was Stefan even still with him?_ She spread the map out on the table, feeling less and less confident with every passing second.

Bonnie began the ritual for the third time, and Elena found her eyes drifting closed at the futility of her current situation. Bonnie had been her one hope. When Damon had talked her through the plan over breakfast, she had felt hope flare in her chest again. They would find Klaus, and then they would find Stefan, and then everything could go back to how it was. Now though, that plan was dissolving, and that brief flare of hope along with it.

Suddenly, Bonnie gasped, and Elena's eyes flew open. "What is it?"

Bonnie was looking down at the map. "I've found him."

Elena looked over Bonnie's shoulder at the map. For a moment, she struggled to work out the place where the drop of blood had snaked to a stop. "Oh my God..."

Bonnie looked up at her. "Klaus is in Europe."

* * *

><p>Stefan felt as if all of his senses were being assaulted at once, but it wasn't an entirely unpleasant experience. It was the sounds that had hit him first. Their small plane had landed and, after a quick snack from the pilot, Klaus had shown him off the plane and given him his first look at Europe. It wasn't what Stefan had been expecting. There were cars everywhere, their horns honking and breaks screeching, people everywhere, shouting at the tops of their voices and pushing their way through the crowd outside the airport. <em>Wasn't Europe supposed to be slower, calmer, than America?<em> Klaus found a taxi already occupied by two young women. By the time Stefan had seated himself, the girls and the driver had all been compelled to go wherever Klaus wished them to. Stefan vaguely heard Klaus mention somewhere called _Montmartre_, but he was too busy staring at the pulse in the blond girl's neck to pay too much attention. As he pulled her towards him, he breathed in her scent. He detected the faintest aroma of lavender, which stirred a memory inside him. Long brown hair, washed in lavender shampoo. The veins around his eyes popped out, and he forgot everything else, and let the bloodlust take him.

* * *

><p>The woods were completely silent. Not even the birds made a noise. They all instinctively knew that a predator was close by. Katherine wrinkled her nose in disgust. They didn't need to be worried; animal blood was so not her style. As she picked her way through the overgrown vegetation, memories of the last time she had been in these woods flooded her mind. At first, her very human stumblings had nearly led to her doom; she remembered cursing her heartbeat, certain it would give her location away. Then suddenly, newly turned, the euphoric feel of running through the trees at lightning speed, never getting weary, not needing to slow down to search out a path. She ran until she found the edge of the woods, feasting on a hapless rider before commandeering the horse and fleeing as far from Klaus as she could. A root tripped her up, bringing the vampire back to the present, and she looked around her. She smiled slowly. <em>There.<em> She wandered slowly up to the door of the cottage, placing her hand upon the wood before slowly pushing it open. Nobody had been here for centuries, not since her own night here. She stepped into the rotting old house, and stood there looking into the room where she had breathed her last human breath. The smirk that had graced her face upon seeing the old cottage grew wider. Klaus had been so angry with her when she took off that night, the knowledge that she had taken the moonstone with her only serving to enrage him further. _How much more angry would he have been,_ she wondered now, _if he had known what else she had taken that night?_

* * *

><p><em><em>So there we are, chapter/episode two. I hope you liked it, and please review! ;)


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Okay guys, firstly, I want to thank each and every one of you who reviewed and favourited my story. You are really helping me write this, because without you all, I would succumb to laziness as I usually do, so thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

A/N 2: Secondly, I wanted to say that this is the last chapter that will be just setting up the various plots; after this one the stories will all pick up their pace a bit more. I just really wanted to give each s/l a good starting point, so bear with me!

* * *

><p>Matt backed through the door to the kitchen, his arms filled with plates of food. Walking over to one of the booths in his section, he placed three down in front of the customers sitting there, before moving on to the next table. As he placed the last plate down, he became aware that someone was looking at him. Turning around, he saw Tyler standing over by the pool tables. Tyler nodded to him, then tipped his head back, a clear invitation to join him. Matt turned back towards the kitchen, ignoring the guy at the table who was asking for salt. He slammed through the door and leaned against the counter, breathing hard. He so didn't want to deal with his so-called best friend right now. So-called, because matt knew for a fact that Tyler had been hanging around, just waiting for him to screw up enough with Caroline so he could make his move. He had seen them together, driving around town in Caroline's car, not even trying to be sneaky about it. He couldn't decide who he was more angry with; his best friend for moving in on his girlfriend so quickly, or Caroline for moving on almost immediately. He'd only wanted to take a break, give himself a chance to wrap his head around the idea that <em>everyone<em> around him had suddenly become a part of a supernatural world, a world that he wasn't a part of. He didn't even know if he could be a part of it, let alone if he wanted to. His girlfriend was a _vampire_ for God's sake, how was he supposed to just be okay with that? He'd only wanted to take a beat, try to come to terms with all of this stuff. He didn't think it would be permanent. _Not that it matters now_, he thought to himself bitterly. Tyler had already taken his place.

Hopefully he had spent enough time in the kitchen to have avoided Tyler. He walked back slowly out of the kitchen. His shift was almost up, all he had to do was refill all the salt shakers, and he was out of there. As he swung through the door however, he bumped into someone standing right in front of him. "sorry, man," he began, before looking up and seeing who he had banged into.

"Are you seriously avoiding me?" Tyler said, an amused smirk pulling up one side of his mouth. "Hanging out in the kitchen? Not cool, bro." He grinned.

Matt scowled back at him. "What do you want, Tyler?" He asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

Tyler looked surprised. "I just thought... Your shift is over now, right? I thought maybe we could hang out for a while." Tyler put his hand on Matt's shoulder. "It's been ages since we like, just hung out, you know?"

"I don't think so." Matt shrugged off his hand and started walking away from his ex-best friend.

Tyler lunged and grabbed him, turning him back round to face him. "Hey, what is your problem?"

Matt smacked his hand away from him. "The last time you and I spent any time together, you were trying to rip me to shreds as part of your little werewolf trick!"

Tyler's eyes darted around the bar, hoping nobody had heard Matt's outburst. "Dude," he hissed, "would you not shout it out like that?" He leaned closer. "I was going to apologise for that while we, you know, shot some pool or whatever." He leaned back. "Are you seriously this mad at me over this? Matt, it wasn't my fault. I can't control it. Anyway, I got a lot closer to biting Caroline than I did you, and she's forgiven me."

Matt had begun to think that maybe he was being a bit harsh, but at the mention of Caroline, the real reason why he was angry came rushing back. "Yeah. I'll just _bet_ Caroline forgave you."

Tyler was confused, and he was just about to say so when he saw matt's face turn even more hostile. He didn't have to turn around. Even from across the room he could smell her perfume. It did something to his insides, made him feel calmer, like he'd just let go of a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding.

"I gotta go," Matt said, casting a dark look at each of them, before turning and walking towards the staff room.

"Hey, where's he going?" Caroline's voice came from just behind his shoulder.

Tyler turned to face her. "I've got no clue," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

"I guess he really doesn't want anything to do with me," Caroline said sadly. "I was really hoping things would at least be not weird between us."

"Trust me, it's not you," Tyler put his hand on her arm and started moving towards the doors. "He's still pissed I tried to bite him. Come on, let's get out of here."

They moved out into the sunlight, Tyler looking down instinctively to make sure Caroline was wearing her ring. Of course she was, she never took it off. He had to check though, for some reason he couldn't quite identify. "So, what are we up to today?"

Caroline opened her bag and rummaged around in it, before bringing out a folder. She opened it up and showed him the contents. "This is what my mom and I printed off of her computer. We found a few leads on where Klaus might have gone." She leafed through the pages, finding one that looked like a full police report. "This one looks good. I'm going to take it over to Elena." She looked up at him. "Do you wanna come with?"

"Sure," they started walking towards her car parked a few blocks down from The Grill. "So, how are you and your mom now?"

"We're getting there," Caroline unlocked her car and got in, handing her bag over to Tyler's lap as he sat in the passenger seat. "She seems to be doing okay with the whole 'my daughter's a vampire' thing now." She started the car. "She actually asked me if I wanted a blood bag, instead of a cup of coffee this morning."

Tyler barked out a laugh. "Yeah? What did you say to her?"

* * *

><p>Elena looked up at the Boarding House as she pulled her Jeep to a stop on the gravel path. She glanced over at the folder Caroline had given her sitting on the passenger seat, underneath her bag. This was a lead, a good one. They had to follow it up. She knew though, that as soon as she handed the information over to Damon, she would have to fight with everything she had to be included in whatever plan he came up with. He would want to go, and he wouldn't want her to go with him. She took a deep breath, and steeled herself for the fight to come, and got out of the car. As she reached the front door, she realised that she was waiting for him to open the door. Damon almost always heard her approach the house, and he was normally waiting just on the other side of the door for her. <em>Was he okay?<em> Suddenly feeling worried, she turned the handle, and in her haste stumbled over the threshold. Her fear ratcheted up a notch when there was no laugh at her less than graceful entrance. "Damon?" She called out, walking through the foyer and into the cavernous hallway. At first she heard nothing, but then sounds drifted down to her from upstairs. Sounds of things breaking. Slipping her hand into her bag, she removed a stake and a vervain dart. She advanced towards the stairs slowly, keeping her ears pricked. As she passed the doorway to the living room, she saw the remains of the coffee table in bits on the floor, and she starting moving more quickly. As she reached the bottom stair, another crash sound floated down to her, followed by a strangled yell. Elena gave up trying to be quiet, and ran up the stairs, following the direction of the sounds. As she rounded the corner to Stefan's room, she saw a lamp fly across the open doorway and smash into the wall. Then she heard Damon cry out again, and this time she could discern the words. "You stupid, self-righteous, fucking..." Something else came hurtling across the room, and Elena had to duck as she peered into the room. The place was trashed; books lying in a heap on the floor, the bookshelves they had been standing on reduced to splinters. Photo frames that had been swept off the desk had smashed into shards, the sharp edges glittering as they lay on the rug. Clothes and bed linen ripped to rags and strewn all over the place. And Damon stood alone in the middle of it all, feathers from the ripped pillows floating down around him, lending an incongruous innocent feel to the scene of devastation.

"Damon?" Elena said tentatively, unsure of what was going on.

At first, Damon didn't react, just stood there amid the carnage, breathing heavily as he looked down at the floor. Then, slowly, he lifted his head and turned to look at her. "Go away 'Lena," he said quietly, running his fingers through his hair.

Elena squared her shoulders at this. "No." She walked forward a few steps, throwing the stake and the dart in the direction of where the bed used to be. "What is going on, Damon?" She picked her way through the debris and stood in front of him. "Tell me," she reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder, letting her thumb braze his neck. He flinched, and moved to pull away, but she placed her other hand just above his elbow, making him look at her. "What is going on?"

Damon didn't say anything, just looked at her with such a desolate look on his face that it felt like a piece of her heart was breaking. She stepped closer and slid her arms around him, feeling a deep need to comfort him. After a moment, his arms came up and he hesitantly returned the hug. They stood there like that for a moment, still, silently, surrounded by a sea of broken furniture. Then, so quietly that at first Elena thought she was imagining it, Damon spoke. "I've always known where he was. This is my fault." She tried to make shushing noises, rubbing her hands slowly up and down his back. "Even when we weren't talking and we were avoiding each other, I always knew where he was. This is my fault. Ever since I found him in London a couple of decades after we turned, I made sure to keep tabs on him, never lose him. This is my fault. And now? Now I don't even know if he's alive." His voice broke on the last word, and then he got angry again. He pulled away from Elena, holding her arms as he leaned down over her. "This is my fault! And I can't fix it because I don't know where he is!" He shouted.

Elena slid her arms up to his shoulders and touched her forehead to his. "It's okay. Because I think I do."

* * *

><p>Jeremy was helping himself to ice cream straight out of the tub when he heard the doorbell ring. Sucking the back of his spoon, he walked towards the door. As he turned into the hallway, he got that weird feeling in his stomach again, and he glanced instinctively at the stairs. Sitting still on the third step up from the bottom was his mother.<p>

"Hey sweetheart," she said as he unwillingly made eye contact. She smiled a sad sort of smile at him, before nodding in the direction of the door. "aren't you going to get that? It's rude to keep people waiting. I know I taught you that."

"What are you doing here?" He asked, rooted to the spot, unable to move.

She smiled again. "Answer the door, Jeremy."

Jeremy turned and pulled the door open, then turned back to his mother. But she was gone.

"Jeremy?" Bonnie said uncertainly, still standing outside on the porch. "Are you okay?"

Jeremy turned to look at her, and she saw a flash of pure pain and loss across his features, before he pulled himself together. "Yeah. Just, you know, ghost stuff." He pulled the door all the way open and let her inside.

Bonnie reached up on her toes to give him a brief kiss on the cheek. "Actually, that's why I'm here, I think I may have something that might help."

Jeremy followed her into the living room. "You've found a spell to make them go away?"

Bonnie laughed a little, "Well, actually, Elena found it, and– "

"You told Elena?" Jeremy interrupted her. "Bonnie, I told you, I didn't want-"

"I know, Jer," Bonnie put her hand on his arm, trying to calm him. "She didn't know she found it, she just picked the book up off the floor. It was in Latin anyway, she couldn't read it." She sat down on the couch and pulled a large book out of her bag.

"So, what does it do?" Jeremy sat down next to her and eyed the musty tome apprehensively.

"Okay, first, let me tell you what it _doesn't _do." She started flicking through the pages. "It doesn't get rid of the ghosts."

"Oh great, yeah very useful." Jeremy slumped back in his seat.

Bonnie turned towards him. "Jer, I can't get rid of the ghosts permanently, until I know how or why they're here." She found the page and skimmed her finger over the incantation. "But, I can help make the situation a little more bearable, which, hopefully, this spell will do."

Jeremy let out a breath. "Okay, so how will this spell do that?"

"Well, what it does, is put you back in control." Bonnie looked up at him. "It'll make it so you decide when you want them to become visible to you, and when you don't."

"Sounds good to me," Jeremy said, scooting forward on the couch so they could rest the book on the coffee table and look at it together. "Let's get started."

* * *

><p>Night was falling as the taxi travelled through the streets of Montmartre. Stefan remembered reading about the suburb of St Denis and its reputation for being seedy, and Montmartre and its red light district of Pigalle definitely seemed to be living up to it. As darkness fell, strange characters seemed to materialise on the footpaths, people that seemed to be dressed in costume. Some of them looked so bizarre that Stefan started wondering if it was Hallowe'en already.<p>

Klaus guided the driver to a nightclub a little further down the road, then turned to Stefan. "Up for a little partying, my friend?"

Stefan smiled back. "Sure. Sounds like fun."

"What about your little playmate?" Klaus gestured to the girl slumped in Stefan's lap. "Is she up to joining us?"

"No," Stefan shoved the girl off him into the footwell. "She's dead."

"Pity," Klaus broke the neck of the girl he had been drinking from and threw her down on top of her friend, as the taxi pulled to a stop. "Although I'm sure there'll be plenty more inside."

They both climbed out onto the sidewalk, the compelled driver pulling smoothly away to carry out whatever instructions Klaus had given him. Stefan looked up at the sign above the nightclub doors. The name _Masquerade_ blazed out in a soft gold colour, and the occasional jet of smoke blasted out from the sides. Stefan looked over at Klaus with a quizzical expression. "What is this place?"

Klaus grinned at him. "I spent quite some time here a few decades ago," he said, his eyes glazing over as he wandered into his memories. "This place started off as a burlesque bar, long before it ever became something that people knew about. And then, a few years ago, a friend of mine bought it." He turned towards Stefan and started walking backwards to the doors. "I think you'll like this place as it is now, my friend." He opened the door and gestured for Stefan to walk inside. "Welcome to Steampunk."

Stefan walked through the doors slowly, looking around him. Everywhere he looked, people were dressed in outfits from the 1800s. There were women wearing corsets and holding fans, men with goggles on, a couple were even riding life-size Penny Farthings around the cavernous room. Looking up, he saw dozens of small air balloons floating near the ceiling. "What is this place?" he asked Klaus.

"It's where people with a fascination for the inventive Victorian period can come together to appreciate all its glory." A female voice answered from behind him. He turned to see a small dark haired woman standing with her hand on Klaus's shoulder. "Long time, no see." She said now, turning her attention to the original.

Klaus smiled down at her. "Stefan, I would like you to meet my friend, Laverna."

Stefan took her proffered hand and lightly kissed her knuckles. "You're a vampire?" he asked her.

She smiled at him and nodded. "I was turned in 1832. Hence my love for this time period." She gestured around the club, looking around fondly.

Klaus looked over at Stefan. "She's also a very powerful witch."

"Do you need something from me, my love?" Laverna asked, fluttering her eyelashes at her friend.

"All in good time, my dear." He took her hand and twirled her around to the beat of the music, letting her lead them further into the club. "Let's all have a drink first, shall we?"

* * *

><p>Jeremy and Bonnie were still sitting on the couch when Alaric returned home. He watched them laughing and joking for a moment, glad to see that whatever problems they had been having seemed to be over. The Gilbert family could use as many upbeat moments that they could get, especially these days. His eyes drifted to the picture of Jenna standing on the hallway table. He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, not yet ready to deal with those emotions. He wasn't sure he would ever be ready. He walked into the living room, and the two teenagers stopped chatting and glanced up at him. "Hey guys, how was your day today?" He settled himself in the armchair, resting his bag against his feet.<p>

Jeremy looked at Bonnie. "It was pretty good, actually."

Bonnie smiled shyly then stood up. "I think it's probably time I went home." She picked up her bag that seemed to be bulging with books and hefted it over her shoulder. "Text you later?" she said to Jeremy.

"Sure," Jeremy replied, standing up too. "Here, I'll walk you out."

"Thanks. Night, Ric." Bonnie waved at Alaric before turning towards the hallway, Jeremy close behind her.

Just as Alaric was trying to decide between a cup of coffee and a shot of whiskey, his cell phone buzzed. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw that he had received a text from Damon. He opened it up and read, _Lead on where Klaus is. Can you help?_ Alaric sighed and then got up. _What the hell_, he thought. Damon had better whiskey anyway. He grabbed his car keys and moved to the front door, yelling up the stairs to tell Jeremy where he was going.

* * *

><p>Jeremy was in his bathroom washing up when he heard Alaric's shout. <em>Guess it'll be dinner for one. Again.<em> He thought, but not bitterly. He was glad to get a chance for some alone time. The spell that Bonnie had done was supposed to make it possible for him to decide whether or not he wanted to see any ghosts, but he hadn't yet tried it out. He had been feeling that weird thing in his stomach for about an hour, and he guessed that meant that there was a ghost around, he just hadn't decided to see them. Well, now he was going to. He walked into his bedroom and sat down on the end of his bed. He looked around the room once, and then closed his eyes. "Mom?" He called out softly. Almost immediately, he felt a presence sitting next to him. He opened his eyes slowly, and saw her there, sitting with one leg folded under her. The image was so familiar it was painful; he remembered crawling onto her lap and snuggling into the little triangle between her knees as a child.

"Hey there, sweetheart," she said, that same sad smile on her face. "I thought you'd started avoiding me."

"What are you doing here?" He asked again. "Why can I see you?"

"Don't you want to see me?" she asked, a playful edge creeping into her smile.

Jeremy knew that look, it was the one she used whenever she wanted to change the subject. "Of course I do. But, you're dead.." he stopped suddenly. _She did know she was dead, right?_

Her smile grew, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking. "I know that, Jer, don't worry, you didn't upset me." She moved her arm as if to take his hand, but stopped, then linked her fingers and laid them in her lap.

"Mom please, I don't understand what's going on. You have to tell me."

Miranda sighed, then nodded slowly, as if resigning herself to something unpleasant. "Consequences," she said simply, her eyes roaming over his face. "You can't get something for nothing, especially in the supernatural world. Bonnie really should have known that."

"So, this is her consequence for bringing me back?"

"Not hers. Yours." Miranda sighed again, then leaned a bit closer to her son. "Humans can't just jump from one plane of existence to another, it just can't be done. And you didn't." She looked sadly at him. "You're caught between worlds at the moment, one foot in reality, and the other in the afterlife. The spell that Bonnie used tethers you to her world so you can't let go." Tears started falling from her eyes. "The spell can't last forever; a balance has to be made. When the magic breaks, you'll be pulled into the side that you belong. This side. I'm so sorry, baby." Miranda tried to touch him again, but her hand passed through his arm.

Jeremy swallowed hard. "What about the spell Bonnie did today?" He asked.

Miranda shook her head slightly. "She just put a mask on you, to blind you to the spirit world, unless you choose to see it. It won't help in the end."

Jeremy nodded. "How long?"

His mother shrugged helplessly. "You'll know when the time has come, you'll feel it."

"So... what do I do now?" He sounded like such a lost little boy that Miranda physically felt her heart breaking for him.

"You help your sister," she said, trying to be strong for him. "She needs all the help she can get right now." She sighed. "I never wanted either of you mixed up in this life."

Jeremy snorted. "Yeah, well, then you probably shouldn't have married into a vampire hunting family and then adopted a doppelganger."

Miranda gave a small laugh. "Yes, I guess you didn't have much choice in it really, either of you." She wiped her face, then looked at him. "I can stay here as long as you need me, you know."

Jeremy nodded. "Thanks, but I'll be okay." He didn't think the truth had sunk in yet. Soon, he would be dead. Actually dead, and there wasn't a thing that anyone could do about it. He had a sudden thought. "Why is it just you here? Where's Dad?" He was suddenly very afraid. "You are together, right?"

"Oh yes," Miranda smiled. "Your Dad's just busy." As his questioning look, she continued, "There're things to do on this side too, you know." She looked at him. "You'll find us, when you get here. All the people we loved are here. You won't be alone."

Jeremy smiled at her. "Will you just sit with me for a while?"

Miranda tucked her hair behind her ear and settled herself more comfortably on the bed. "Anything for you, baby."

* * *

><p>"So, we have a plan?" Elena looked over at Damon and Alaric, both hunched over the desk in the study as they sifted through Isobel's research material.<p>

Damon looked over at her. "We do," he said warily, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. He knew where this conversation was headed, and he already didn't like it. He sighed, and decided to just dive in. The sooner it started, the sooner it could be over. "Elena, you are not coming with us."

"Yes I am, Damon." Elena crossed her arms over her chest.

_Here we go, _thought Damon, heroically resisting the urge to roll his eyes. The bloody woman could teach lessons in stubbornness. "It's too dangerous. This is Klaus we're talking about." He moved out from behind the desk. "Right now, he still thinks you're dead. This is a good thing. How about we don't clue him in to the fact that he's wrong?"

Elena opened her mouth to retort, but Alaric beat her to it.

"Elena, why don't you call the others. We need to fill them in." He gestured for Elena to leave the room. "Damon, a word?"

She scowled, but went to find her bag to get her phone. "This conversation isn't over!" She flung at Damon over her shoulder.

"Yes it is!" He called back. He turned to Ric. "What?"

"You are planning on going, right?"

"Of course," Damon scoffed, surprised that his friend would even ask.

"So, who are you going to trust to look after her while you're gone?" Ric asked, raising his eyebrows slightly.

Damon opened his mouth to respond, but then realised the teacher had a point. He stood still for a minute, thinking it through, before frowning and heading out of the study to find Elena. He found her in the living room, putting her phone back in her bag. "They're on their way," she said, turning to him with a determined expression.

He raised his hands in defeat. "Fine. You can come." When her eyes opened wide with surprise, then narrowed with suspicion, he continued, "You're to do what I say, when I say, okay?" He advanced on her until there was barely an inch between them, pointing his finger at her chest. "I'm serious, Elena. No stupid heroic stuff this time, do you hear me?"

Elena closed her hand around his and nodded. "I hear you. No heroic stuff."

"No _stupid_ heroic stuff." He ground the words out between his teeth.

She smiled. "No _stupid_ heroic stuff." She agreed.

Damon nodded. "Good."

Just then, he heard the front door open, and the smell of Blondie's perfume wafted through the house. Reluctantly, he slid his hand out of Elena's grasp and turned to watch as Caroline, Jeremy, the witch and the werewolf all filed into his home. Alaric came in from the study, and before long everyone was seated as they had been a couple of nights before.

Damon walked to the fireplace, his usual place, as Elena cleared her throat. "We've found Klaus. He's in France." She looked around the group, before settling her eyes on Damon. "We're going to go after him, and see if he can lead us to Stefan."

* * *

><p>Katherine sighed as she sank into her first class seat on the plane to Paris, waiting for it to take off. She had had to compel lots of people just to get through the airport and onto the plane, not to mention the four security guards at the check in desk as they scanned her luggage. One item in particular had raised all kinds of red flags. So now she was tired. And hungry. Beckoning the waitress over to her secluded corner seat, she smiled. Flying first class was the only way to travel.<p>

* * *

><p>So that's it! Next chapter will be quite DE heavy because, you know, DE road trip! Also, it's gonna be a flashback chapter. Everyone loves a flashback, right? So anyway, I hope you enjoyed this installment, and please review!<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing! Everytime I get a review alert, my heart jumps out of my chest. You guys are awesome! So, this chapter took longer than I thought it would. I had it all ready, but when I read it over, I decided to go a completely different way, and rewrote the whole thing. Also, I was originally planning to have a lot more happening in this chapter, but if I'd included it all, it would have been so long you would all have fallen asleep on your keyboards, LOL.

A/N 2: As promised, this is a flash back chapter. I don't know about you guys, but the flashbacks in the show have always been a bit too Damon-lite for me, so I wanted to address this issue here. I've always kind of wondered what the Salvatore brothers' relationship was like before it all got twisted by the twisted sister Katherine, so this is my version. I hope you like it! Oh, by the way, I decided that for this story, there would be a 7 year age gap between the boys, I hope that's okay.

* * *

><p>Elena sat forward in her seat and looked out of the small round window by her elbow. She couldn't see anything but clouds, and she had a brief moment of panic as she thought of how far down the ground was. She shook her head slightly at herself. During the planning of going to France to find Stefan, she hadn't once thought that this would be her first time on an airplane. It actually wasn't too bad, minus the ear popping that had occurred shortly after take-off. As if sensing her distress, Damon had gently stroked the knuckles on her hand that had turned white from gripping the armrest, and explained about the air pressure. She was certain that she hadn't experienced the most conventional first time boarding an airplane. Normally, people had passports and had to go through security checks. Then again, normally people weren't travelling with bags filled with vervain bombs and wooden stakes, and they also didn't have a vampire travelling with them using his compulsion at every turn. She hadn't liked that at first, seeing the glazed look come over the check in desk attendant as Damon had looked into her eyes and compelled her into believing she'd seen their passports. She'd glared at him, but he'd only raised his eyebrows at her, reminding her that she'd agreed to do things his way. It was the only way he would have let her come along and she knew it. Besides, she didn't even have a passport, so if she wanted to come along, compulsion was a necessary evil that she had to put up with.<p>

She fidgeted in her seat again, anxious to get to France and start looking for Stefan. She stopped as she felt a hand on her arm.

"We've only been up in the air for an hour, Elena," Damon said, his trademark smirk firmly in place. "We've still got a while to go yet." His eyes roamed over her face, taking in her agitated state, and his voice softened. "Why don't you get some sleep? There's nothing we can do right now."

Elena looked pointedly at his laptop, which was sitting open on the table in front of him. "I could help you search," she said, leaning over to see what he was looking at.

"Can you read French?" He asked, the teasing tone back in his voice.

Elena slumped back in her seat with a sigh. "No," she grumbled, before turning to look at him again. "Can you?"

Damon chuckled softly. "I've been around for over 170 years Elena, I needed to find something to fill the time."

"Do you know other languages?"

Damon sneaked a sideways glance at her. She seemed to be settling down in her seat now, so he decided to carry on the conversation and keep her calm. "Let's see... I'm fairly fluent in French and Portuguese, I can translate Spanish, but I'm not too good at speaking it, but I can speak Mandarin." He thought for a moment. "Oh, and I'm completely fluent in Italian, of course." He looked over at her amazed gaze. "What? Stefan wasn't the only brother to get some undead education you know." Immediately he flinched; he had said the magic word.

Right on cue, Elena's agitation set back in. "Stefan," she whispered, then looked at Damon, sitting upright in her seat again. "What are we going to do when we get there? We need to have a plan, we should-"

Inwardly cursing himself, Damon reached over to touch her, before thinking better of it. His need to touch her was always there, just underneath the surface, and he was constantly slipping up and forgetting his self-imposed rule of not doing exactly that. She had grabbed his arm as the plane had taken off, and he could still feel the tingles her touch had created. It had gotten progressively more intense since the kiss, his desire for her threatening to block out common sense. He therefore tried to keep touching to a minimum, repeating _It's always going to be Stefan_ over and over in his head until the urge went away. He was deluding himself of course, and he knew it, the urge was still there, right under the surface, but it helped him hold back for a while, at least until the next wave hit him.

He looked over at her again, thought for a moment, then turned to fully face her. "Did Stefan ever tell you what he was like as a child?" He asked, already knowing the reaction he would get.

He was right; Elena turned to him immediately, her curiosity briefly winning out over her worry. "No," she replied, biting her bottom lip in a mix of apprehension and excitement.

Damon's gaze flicked down to her lips before facing away from her and into the aisle. The flight attendant spotted him and immediately hurried over to them. "Could we have a blanket, please?" The attendant nodded enthusiastically, bending over and showing him a large portion of her cleavage as she ran her gaze up and down his body. As she walked away, Damon turned back to Elena, only to see her frowning at the woman's back. A brief spark of hope flared through him for a second. _She's jealous!_ He thought for a moment, before reality hit him like a punch to the stomach. He swallowed the feeling of disappointment, and leaned forwards, finding the lever that would lay Elena's chair back into the sleeping position.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Elena struggled to keep sitting up as her seat slid backwards.

Damon pushed gently on her shoulders. "I'm going to do you a deal," he said, accepting the blanket the flight attendant had brought back without even glancing at her. "If you lie back and close your eyes, then I will tell you some stories about Stefan when he was growing up." He laid the blanket over her, tucking it in gently at the sides, as he looked down at her. He could see the struggle going on behind her eyes; the need to plan and be in control fighting with curiosity. He knew which had won as soon as she tucked her chin under the blanket and snuggled into her seat.

"Deal," she said, watching as he put away his laptop and laid his own seat back. "Tell me about your childhood."

Damon knew she was only interested in learning about Stefan's past, but he couldn't help feeling pleased at the way she worded her demand. _It's always going to be Stefan_, he reminded himself, before laying back in his seat, turning onto his side so that they were facing each other. "Close your eyes," he commanded, watching as she did so, before reaching back into his memories. "I remember this one time, when Stefan was about 9..."

* * *

><p><em>Summertime, 1856<em>

"_Come on Stef! Jump in! You know you want to!" Damon's laugh echoed around the quarry as he trod water, waiting for his brother to finally man up and take the plunge. At sixteen, he had more confidence than Stefan, but that wasn't what was holding his little brother back. Their father had expressly forbidden them to swim at the quarry, probably concerned that they would have too much fun. The fact that Guiseppe had banned it only made the exercise that much more fun for Damon, but for Stefan, the idea of going against his father's wishes was enough to give him indigestion. Damon watched with amusement as Stefan stood on the small rock formation that stood out over the water, the need to do the right thing at war with his desire to make his older brother proud. He hopped from one foot to the other, peering over the ledge and wringing his hands in indecision. "If you don't jump in by the time I've counted to three," Damon called up to the small boy, I shall tell Jillian Forbes about that huge crush you have on her!"_

_Stefan stood up straight and shot a glare at his brother, but the warning still had the right effect. Taking a deep breath, he launched himself into the water, trying to splash as much water in Damon's laughing face as he could. He disappeared under the surface for a few moments, before crashing back up and spluttering. "It's c-c-cold!" he stuttered, before looking at his big brother accusingly. "You said it wouldn't b-be this c-cold in the summer!"_

_Damon laughed and splashed water at Stefan. "If I'd told you the truth, you never would have gotten in now, would you?" He splashed him again. "The quickest way to get warm is to keep moving. Come on, I'll race you to the other side." He struck out with his arms, leaving Stefan to catch up. After a minute though, he slowed his strokes, knowing that Stefan's 9 year old arms would never keep up. He let Stefan overtake him, and grinned to himself as his brother whooped with joy at beating his big brother._

"_I won! I won I won I won!" Stefan crowed, punching his fists in the air and smacking them down into the water._

"_Only because I've been waiting in here so long for you to finally pluck up the courage!" Damon grinned back, letting Stefan enjoy his supposed victory. "Come on, let's get back to shore."_

"_But I haven't been in here long!" Stefan exclaimed, pouting a little._

"_And whose fault was that?" Damon laughed at him. "We can't stay in here for too long, the cold will make you ill. Besides, Father will be expecting us back soon, and we need some time to dry off, otherwise he'll have my hide."_

_Stefan thought for a moment, before realising Damon was right. Then he brightened. "Can we come back tomorrow?" he asked hopefully._

"_Maybe," Damon replied, "if you haven't caught a cold by then!" He lunged forward and pushed down on his brother's shoulders, dunking him down under the surface and laughing as he came back up spluttering. "Come on, grab my shoulders and I'll give you a ride back."_

"_I won the race," Stefan said proudly, "I should be the one offering to give you a lift back to the shore." He placed his hands around Damon's neck however, and soon they were stumbling out of the water._

_Damon shook himself vigorously, before walking over to the tree to retrieve the rest of their clothes. "Here," he said, handing Stefan his trousers and boots. "We'll put our shirts on when we get closer to the house, we'll dry quicker that way." He squatted down and helped Stefan pull his arms through his braces. "Happy Birthday, Stef." He said quietly._

_Stefan looked up at him and grinned. "This was the best birthday ever!" he said, his eyes shining._

_They managed to get back to the house without incident. The hot sun dried their clothes and their hair quickly as they made their way back through the woods to the edge of their property. As they approached the driveway, Damon handed Stefan his shirt and helped him tuck it in, making sure it didn't look like they had been doing anything other than taking a walk. Dinner was a silent affair, as usual. The only change to be seen happened as Guiseppe stood up to leave the table. He walked round to Stefan, put a hand on his shoulder and saying "Happy Birthday, Son," placing a small wrapped package on the table in front of the small boy. Damon watched as Stefan unwrapped the parcel with trembling fingers, hoping that his father had given his brother something nice. As Stefan opened the box and pulled out a watchpiece, his father smiled. "There you go Son," he said jovially, "Now you won't need to rely upon your brother's lousy time-keeping!" He laughed loudly, shooting Damon a contemptuous look as he did so._

_Damon resisted the urge to roll his eyes and concentrated on Stefan. He could see that his brother was struggling between delight at the present and wanting to stay loyal to his brother. Damon decided to help him out. "It's stunning, Stef. Aren't you going to thank Father?"_

_It was all the encouragement Stefan needed. Turning around in his seat, he threw his arms around his father's waist. "Thanks, Father!" he exclaimed, his eyes shining._

_Guiseppe patted his youngest son on the head, before extricating himself from the embrace. "Just make sure you take care of it. Punctuality is important in society; a man cannot be seen to be unsure of where he is supposed to be." He turned and exited the dining room, winding his way towards his study, as was his custom._

_Damon smiled over at his brother, before kicking him in the shin beneath the table. "Come on, Jack, how about a few games of cards, before it's time for your bath?"_

"_Don't call me that!" Stefan scowled at the nickname, but got up from the table anyway._

"_You know you love it," Damon led the way to the drawing room, and they spent a fun hour playing games and laughing and joking with each other, before Stefan's nurse came to get him ready for bed. Damon tidied up the room, then headed to his own bedroom, intending to read for a while before turning in. He was just thinking he had got away with the day's activities, when Stefan came skidding through his doorway, red in the face and looking as though he was about to burst into tears._

"_Damon... I'm so sorry! I...I didn't mean to... it just slipped out!" Stefan gasped out, just as Guiseppe's bellow came thundering up the stairs._

"_Damon!" He roared, "Get in my study! Now!"_

_Damon sighed and rubbed his hand across his face. Stefan stood in front of him, trembling with anxiety. Before either of them could say anything however, Stefan's nurse came through the door and started pulling the small boy back towards his own bedroom, giving Damon a nasty glance as she departed. Damon got up from his chair slowly, and began the walk down to meet his father. He was in a lot of trouble for taking Stefan swimming at the quarry and he knew it was going to be painful, but he couldn't bring himself to regret it. Stefan had enjoyed his birthday, that was what mattered._

* * *

><p>Alaric sat at the kitchen table in the Gilbert house, Isobel's research spread out before him. He was trying to figure out if there was anything there that could help him pinpoint Klaus's location further, so he could give Damon and Elena a few pointers once they landed in France. He hadn't been entirely happy to let Elena go, but he didn't really feel it was his place to protest. He had assured her that he would look after Jeremy while she was gone, which was why he was here instead of at his apartment. Not that he wanted to go back there anyway, but at least it gave him an excuse. He looked over at the youngest Gilbert, who was sitting on the couch with his laptop. He moved over to join him, his eyes getting fuzzy and needing a break. "Find anything?"<p>

Jeremy looked up at him, before turning his laptop so Ric could see it. "I think so. Maybe." He pointed to the map on the screen. "I managed to get a signal from Stefan's phone. The last time it was used was here," he moved his finger down to an area just outside the town of Mystic Falls.

Alaric was amazed that the kid could find these things out. He could barely turn a computer on. Age of the geek, he guessed. "Where is that?"

Jeremy looked up at him. "It's a warehouse district. Maybe if we search it, we'll find something."

Alaric agreed. Give Caroline a call. We might need her."

"Why?"

"Because," Alaric said, standing up and reaching for his car keys, "if Klaus did leave something there, he probably won't have left it unprotected."

Jeremy grabbed his coat from the arm of the couch and pulled out his phone. He sent a quick text, then stood up. "Let's go. I sent her the address. She can meet us there."

Alaric hesitated. "Jeremy-"

"Don't even say it, Ric," Jeremy warned him, before striding over to the front door. "I'm coming." He opened the door and walked out without looking back.

Alaric rubbed his hand over his face, thinking the kid was probably right. After all, the last time he had been left behind, his aunt had died. A sharp pain shot through him at the memory of his own loss. He walked out the house, his eyes lingering on the picture of Jenna in the hallway as he pulled the door closed behind him.

Alaric pulled his car into an abandoned truck stop on the outskirts of the warehouse district, looking around apprehensively. He blew out a breath, then got out of the car and moved to open the trunk, searching through his store of weapons. He heard Jeremy step out of the car and leaned round, about to tell him to stay put, but the words died in his throat. He watched as Jeremy seemed to be having a whispered conversation with himself. "Uh, Jeremy? Everything okay?"

The kid turned round to him with a sad sort of smile on his face, before looking over his shoulder. "Caroline's here." The blond vampire pulled her car up next to Ric's and stepped out, Tyler following her out of the passenger side.

Caroline moved round to Ric's open trunk and pulled out a couple of stakes. "Hoping to run into trouble, are we?" she turned her blue eyes up to look at the history teacher come vampire hunter.

"Definitely not hoping, but prepared nonetheless."

"So, where should we look first?" Tyler asked, taking a couple of stakes for himself and shooting a nervous glance in Caroline's direction, as if scared the wood in his hand would slam into her chest of its own accord.

"That one," Jeremy answered, pointing in the direction of a warehouse a few blocks down the road.

"Are you sure?" Alaric squinted in the same direction, wondering why they would search that one first when there were plenty of others closer to them.

Jeremy looked off to a spot on his right, before turning back to the small group. "I'm sure." He sighed when it became obvious that they were all questioning his sanity right now. "Just trust me, okay? I'm the one who found this lead, aren't I?" He started walking towards the warehouse he had picked out, but not before shooting a glance back at the same spot of thin air.

Alaric watched him with more than a little apprehension, before closing the trunk and falling into step behind the boy. Seems the job of looking after Elena's brother might have just got a little tougher.

* * *

><p>"Why did you call him that?"<p>

"Hmm?" Damon had almost drifted off his in seat, lost in his memories of another time. He looked over at Elena, he brown eyes peeking out at him from under the blanket. He had thought she'd fallen asleep; the controlled breathing had told her that she was at least half way. She stretched in her seat, the movement so feline and graceful that Damon had to literally bite his tongue to keep from moaning out loud.

"You called him Jack. Why did you call him that?"

Now he understood. He had fallen silent in his storytelling, not wanting her to hear about the punishment he had received at the hands of his father for going against his wishes. He smiled thoughtfully. "The girl he had a crush on, Jillian Forbes?" He lay there looking at Elena, watching to see if her curiosity would change into something like jealousy at the idea of Stefan liking someone else. There was no reaction from her however, except for her to snuggle closer to hear his whispered words. It encouraged him to continue, even as he silently berated himself for thinking of this as a good sign. "Everyone called her Jill. She and Stefan were the same age, and they used to go everywhere together, they were inseparable." He smiled again at the memory. "One time I found them out by the stables. They were arguing over a bucket of water." He laughed out loud. "They both wanted to give the water to the horses by themselves. Anyway, Stefan managed to pull the bucket out of Jill's hands, but he tripped." Elena giggled, and Damon couldn't stop it, his heart soared at the sound. "Stefan fell backwards, hitting his head on the floor, and the water drenched him from head to toe." Elena giggled again, and Damon cherished the sound. She didn't laugh nearly often enough. "So I called him Jack from then on, as in the nursery rhyme _Jack and Jill._" Damon laughed and shook his head. "He hated it at first, but as he grew older, he started wearing the name as a kind of badge of honour."

"Why?" Elena asked, thoroughly enjoying this rare glimpse into the lives of the young Salvatore brothers.

When he hit his head, he started bleeding. He always thought he would be scared of the sight of blood, but it turned out he wasn't bothered. That was the day he decided to become a doctor." Damon sighed, acknowledging the loss of his brother's future so long ago. "He used to say that he would marry her, and they would be together forever, only he would fix people with more than just vinegar and brown paper." He sat his chair up and looked at the screen showing their journey. "We'll be landing soon." He turned to her. "You know there will have to be more compulsion at this end too, right?"

Elena nodded, sitting up in her own seat, brushing her fingers through her dishevelled hair. "I know. It's alright." Then she turned to him, almost shyly. "Thank you," she said softly.

Damon couldn't help it this time; he reached out and stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. "You're welcome."

* * *

><p>Stefan sighed as he sat in a booth at the back of the club. This was his third night in this place, and while he certainly didn't mind the continuous line of willing girls that he fed on, or had sex with, often both at the same time, he couldn't help but feel as though something was missing. There was something else he wanted to do, something that he knew would satisfy this craving that had lodged deep within him, but he couldn't put his finger on exactly what that something was. Klaus didn't seem willing to help him either; after declaring that Laverna was a witch who could help him with his plan, he had settled down into the party life, seeming to need nothing more than girls and blood. <em>Did he even have a plan? <em>Stefan wondered for the umpteenth time, but knowing it would do no good to ask the original again. The answer was always the same. "Enjoy yourself my friend. There's no rush. I'll let you know what the plan is when it's the right time." _But when was the right time going to be?_ Stefan was getting more than a little frustrated, and this deep, burning desire to do _something_ was only adding to his agitation. He needed a distraction. His eyes roamed around the room, until they landed on a girl dancing by herself. He watched as she moved up to first one man, then another, sliding her hands down the arms and gyrating her hips next to them in time with the music. Her blond hair was ragged, and even from this distance Stefan could sense an air of unkemptness about her. _A prostitute_, he thought. As he continued to watch her, a blurred memory crept out of his subconscious, but it flitted away again before he could grab hold of it. He got up, stalking towards her, suddenly certain that she would help him with his satisfaction problem. She turned towards him as he approached her, a smile lighting up her tired looking face as she spied a paying customer. She slid her hands up his chest and around his neck.

"Comment t'apelle tu?" she asked him seductively.

Stefan smiled slowly, running his fingers lightly across her face, a predatory gleam in his eyes. "Call me Jack."

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><p>AN: So, who can guess where I'm going with this? I want Stefan to be dark, like a really dark, depraved serial mass murderer, and sorry, but a list of your victims just doesn't cut it for me!

As always, I hope you enjoyed it, and please review!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Two updates in one day! Whoo, I am on fire! LOL. Actually, i am just trying to get these first six chapters up, mainly to stop myself from fiddling with them, because otherwise this story will never get off the ground! ;) As always, thank you all so much for reviewing, it really means the world to me! I hope you enjoy this next installment!

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><p>Jeremy pulled up short as he came close to the warehouse his mother had pointed out to him. There were other ghosts around, he could feel them, but thanks to Bonnie's spell, he could pick and choose who he saw. He only wanted Miranda. In the back of his mind he felt a little bit guilty; the fact that he was spending so much time with his mother when he was going to be joining her so soon felt wrong whenever he thought of his sister. Elena couldn't see her mother now, and she wasn't going to, hopefully for a very long time, but a part of Jeremy felt sad that he was getting this 'gift' when she couldn't.<p>

Miranda put her hand out in front of his chest, not quite touching but almost. "There are people in there," she said. "I don't know how many, and I don't know if they're vampires. I saw at least three in the main area, but there may be more in the back." She looked at him pointedly. "Just because you know you're running out of time, doesn't mean you should do anything stupid, sweetheart." She looked over her shoulder at his friends. "You're family need time to adjust to this. Elena will never forgive you if you abandon her now." She knew it was harsh, but she needed him to be careful, she needed him to live every last extra second he had been given. As a mother, she needed it.

Jeremy sighed, looking up at the warehouse doors, wondering if there was a quieter way in. "I get it, Mom," he whispered. "I'll be careful." He looked in her eyes, "I promise."

Miranda smiled. "That's my boy." Then she faded. Jeremy pushed her out purposefully, needing to concentrate on what was actually around him for the next part of their mission.

"I can hear people moving around in there." Caroline stood with her hair tucked behind her ears, listening to the sounds coming from within the warehouse. "We need to find a back way in."

Alaric walked off to the side a little, looking down the side of the building. "There's an emergency exit up on the second level," he said, looking up at it. "But the ladder is still in place, we can't reach it."

"You mean you can't," Caroline walked quietly until she was underneath the metal frame. "Tyler, throw me."

Tyler placed his hands on her waist, leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Are you sure you want to go up first? You could give me a boost instead."

Caroline turned her head to look at him, noticing with a sharp intake of breath how close he was. "No, I'll go," she turned her body straight and bent her knees. "I'm lighter, I'll make less noise when I land."

With his werewolf strength, Tyler lifted her off the ground easily, and Caroline flew up and grabbed hold of the metal bars.

Quiet as you can, Caroline," Alaric whispered up to her. "If they're vampires in there, they'll hear us."

Caroline nodded, then pulled on the fire escape ladder, praying that the thing had been oiled recently. They were in luck, the ladder descended smoothly, clunking against the sides gently. She stopped still, listening again, to see if there was any indication that the people inside had heard her. When she was satisfied that there was nothing, she called down to the others. "Okay, climb on up."

Jeremy went up the ladder first, followed by Tyler, Alaric keeping an eye on the corner of the warehouse. When the three teenagers were settled on the top level of the fire escape, he slung his bag of weapons over his shoulder and climbed up to meet them. "Okay," he said to the small group in front of him. "We don't know if they are vampires in there, or if they're just compelled humans." If they are vampires, and you get into trouble, run outside. I doubt any of them will have daylight jewellery. If they're humans, knock them out, don't kill them." He looked at Caroline at this remark.

"She knows what to do, Alaric," Tyler bit out, bristling at the thought that Caroline couldn't control herself.

Alaric nodded, then motioned for Caroline to open the door. "Here we go."

* * *

><p>It was dark by the time Damon and Elena finally made their way out of the airport. Even though it was the very early hours of the morning, people were everywhere, and Damon had to grab hold of Elena's hand to make sure they weren't separated. Elena had found some comfort in this small gesture; the new sights and smells and sounds of a country so foreign to her was a little scary, and her hand in his made her feel safe. She tried not to analyse what that meant. Damon flagged down a taxi, and spoke to the driver in fluent French. She didn't understand what he was saying, but she caught the word "Hotel", and guessed the rest of the conversation. "We're going to a hotel?" She asked him, accusation in her voice.<p>

Damon sighed. "Elena, did you really expect us to just run around the whole of Paris as soon as we landed?" He rubbed his hand over his face in exasperation. "We have no idea where to start looking. We're tired, and hungry, and if we don't get some rest and try to whip up an actual plan, one or both of us is going to get killed." He leaned over in the back seat of the taxi, reaching out and tucking her hair behind her ear. "We will find him, Elena. We just need to go about this the right way."

Elena looked at him, his eyes the only feature she could make out in the darkness. When had they got to this? When had it turned into him being the reasonable one, and her wanting to rush off on impulse? Elena turned to look at the sights whizzing past her window, thinking. If she was honest with herself, she had always been impulsive. The old Elena would never have thought a plan all the way through before jumping in with both feet. But thinking that way got people killed. She had firsthand experience of that. The taxi slowed to a stop outside an enormous building, and Elena's thoughts were momentarily halted as she gazed up at it. "Damon," she whispered as she stepped out of the cab, "this is _The Ritz!_"

"I like to travel in style." Damon flashed his trademark smirk over his shoulder as he paid the driver and stepped towards the front door. A doorman held open the door and Damon stepped through into the foyer, trying not to react as he felt Elena's hand slip back into his. He smiled to himself as he watched her gaze around the inside of the hotel at of the corner of his eye, and stepped up to the reception desk.

"Ahh, Monsiour Salvatore! Eet 'as been too long!" A female voice purred from behind them. As he turned, Damon was pulled into a hug by a tall, beautiful black woman, who air-kissed his cheeks noisily. Without even sparing a glance for Elena, she ran her hands up his chest, resting them on his shoulders. "Where 'ave you been all this time?" The woman pouted prettily, and Damon could have sworn he heard a noise like an angry cat coming from Elena's direction.

"You know me, Dominique, I like to... get around." He replied casually, adding just a hint of sexuality. Sure enough, the angry cat sound came again. He was beginning to like this.

Dominique smiled at him, before signalling to a bellboy with a wave of her hand. "Your usual suite?"

"Yes, thank you," Damon leaned forward and placed a kiss on the woman's cheek. "And could you make sure we're not disturbed during our stay? We'll be quite... busy."

Dominique's eyes finally strayed over to where Elena was standing slightly behind Damon, then moved back to the vampire. "Naturellement," she nodded once, then clicked her fingers at the uniformed young man standing next to her. He picked up their bags and guided them to the bank of elevators.

Once they were safely inside, Elena turned to Damon. "You've been here before."

It certainly wasn't a question, and it seemed more like an accusation, which confused Damon. "I have been many places, Elena." He said, not quite sure why it was a big deal.

"And you obviously know _Dominique,_" Elena practically spat the name out.

Deciding that jet lag was settling in for the beautiful brunette next to him, who was _still holding his hand_, Damon decided not to comment. The elevator came to a stop, and the bellboy ushered them down the hall to the door of their room. Letting Elena walk through first, Damon turned and gave the boy a tip, before stepping through, closing the door behind him.

Elena wandered through the suite, amazed at the opulence surrounding her. There was a salon, complete with chaise longues and floor length windows; a bathroom that was completely covered in marble, and a massive bed in the centre of the very large bedroom. _Wait a minute..._ "Damon, why is there only one bed?" She asked, standing in front of him and crossing her arms.

"Because it's a one-bedroom suite," Damon moved across to the mini bar, smiling as he saw his favourite bourbon placed right at the front. Dominique remembered everything, which was what made her such a good concierge.

"Fine. I'll get my own room." Elena made a move towards the door, only to slam into Damon's chest as he sped in front of her.

Catching her wrists and holding them between their bodies, Damon leaned over her menacingly. "If you think that I am going to let you out of my sight for even a second while we are here, you can think again." He said slowly, letting the words sink in. At her huff of frustration, he sighed, then led her over to one of the sofas. "The suite is big enough for the both of us, Elena," he pushed her gently down onto the cushions before sitting down next to her. "You can take the bed, and I'll sleep on one of these couches, okay?"

Elena thought for a minute before nodding. She knew it made sense.

Damon was inwardly impressed at how quickly she had acquiesced, but wisely decided not to comment. He plucked a brochure from the coffee table and handed it to her, before standing up. "Why don't you order something from room service? I'm going to take a quick shower."

"What about you?" Elena called back to him. "I mean, do you want some food too?" She thought for a moment, then "How are you going to get blood here?"

Damon pulled a cool box from out of his suitcase and waved it in her direction. "Got it covered. Besides, if I run out, Dominique will be happy to acquire more for me."

"She.. she knows what you are?" Elena was incredulous.

Damon rolled his eyes at her. "Of course she does. Dominique is the head concierge of one of the finest hotels in the world, it's her job to know everything about her clients." He waggled his eyebrows at her. "Order the food, I'll be out in a bit."

* * *

><p>Klaus was sat in the back of the nightclub, enjoying a tasty young brunette pared with a vintage red wine, when he noticed that Stefan was no longer in sight. Pushing the almost dead girl off his lap he stood, swinging his gaze around the cavernous room. He moved to look in the back rooms, the bathrooms, even behind the bar, but couldn't see his partner anywhere. "Fuck!" he shouted, throwing the bottle of wine in his hand across the room. A few people screamed as glass rained down on them, but nobody paid much attention. Klaus stood there breathing hard for a moment, trying to keep his temper under control. After all, he couldn't be certain that Stefan had seen his chance and abandoned him, he could have just found some pretty thing to take back to their hotel and eat. He made his way through the throng of dancers, fire eaters and jugglers, keeping an eye out for his partner as he moved. He spied Laverna in the corner of her club, snacking on two young men, moving from one to the other with a look of pure ecstasy on her face. He smiled briefly; he had missed her. He made his way to the doors and stepped out into the cool night air. Even though it was early in the morning, people milled about; prostitutes hanging on corners, johns wandering between them, trying to decide who they would pick for the night. Klaus took a deep breath and wandered to the side of the building. As he rounded the corner, the sweet smell of iron hung heavy in the air; someone had just spilled a lot of blood. Hope started building within him, maybe this was the night that his plan started moving forward. He stepped into the darkness of the alley between the buildings and walked into the inky blackness, following his nose. Towards the end of the alley, in a small patch of moonlight, he came across what he had been waiting for ever since they had arrived in France.<p>

Stefan was kneeling down on the damp musty ground, leaning over what seemed to be a pile of rags. Klaus came up behind him, looking over his shoulder, and what he saw confirmed his suspicions. He smiled. "Finally my friend, I thought we'd be sat here waiting forever!" He clapped his hand on Stefan's shoulder, just as the sound of clattering high heels floated down the alley.

Laverna came rushing up to him, her eyes wild as she grabbed his arm, pulling him down so she could whisper in his ear. "That person you wanted me to keep a look out for?" She said breathlessly. "I felt his presence a few minutes ago." She looked up at him, adoration and fear at war in her eyes. "The older Salvatore is here, in Paris."

Stefan stood up, and Klaus looked down at the bundle of rags. Stefan's work wasn't very precise, but then, he hadn't had the correct tools to do the job. "No matter," Klaus said, putting his arm around Laverna's waist. "We're done here anyway." He looked at Stefan, who was standing very still in front of him. "Welcome back, Ripper."

The three vampires turned and walked down the alley, leaving the very dead girl behind in the small patch of moonlight.

* * *

><p>"No!"<p>

Alaric heard Tyler's shout and watched out of the corner of his eye as the young werewolf launched himself at the vampire who had Caroline by the throat. With an inhuman roar, Tyler picked the vampire up and threw him in the direction of the front doors. Before he could get up, Jeremy pulled on a lever and the doors opened, letting the sun burn the vampire to a crisp. With the sun streaming in, the other six vampires flattened themselves to the walls, and Jeremy threw one vervain grenade after another, as Alaric came up behind him, staking the incapacitated vampires one by one.

Caroline lay curled in a ball in the middle of the warehouse floor, Tyler's arms holding her tightly as he rocked her from side to side. As the strongest of the group, the young vampire had tried to do too much, tried to attack as well as defend. As a result, three of the other vampires had jumped her. She had managed to fight off two of them, but the last one was older than her, and so much stronger. Before Tyler managed to throw him off her, he had bitten down on her arm, his fangs leaving a jagged tear from elbow to wrist. "It's too big to heal on its own," Caroline looked up at Tyler. "I need blood. There's some in my car."

"I'll go get it, wait here." Tyler sprang up and ran back down the road to where they had parked their cars.

"Are we safe?" Alaric asked, looking around the warehouse warily.

Caroline nodded. "That was all of them." She whispered out, pain taking her voice from her. As Tyler returned she grabbed the blood bag and sucked on it greedily, the slash in her arm closing up as she did. She finished the bag in record time, then shook her healed arm. "Well, I hope that was worth it." She stood up, leaning on Tyler as she did so. He kept his arm around her as they all turned to look around the large space. There were large doors to one side of the room, each padlocked securely. The group moved over to the closest, but nobody made a move to open it.

Alaric took a deep breath. "Well, I guess now that we're here..." He left the thought unfinished. Caroline stepped forward and broke the lock easily, gripping it between her fingers and pulling down sharply. As she moved off to unlock the rest of the doors, Tyler followed her, leaving Ric and Jeremy staring apprehensively at the door in front of them. Alaric turned to Jeremy. "On the count of three?" They both reached down to grab hold of the handles, then lifted the heavy door together. Behind them, the sound of Caroline and Tyler doing the same with the other doors floated back to them.

For a moment, the four of them stood still, staring at the contents of the previously sealed off rooms. "We found them," Jeremy whispered, his voice full of awe. "We've found the other originals."

* * *

><p>Damon sat bolt upright in the darkness. At first, he couldn't work out what had woken him, but then the sound came again. A low moan floated through from the bedroom, followed by a sharp scream. He sped into the room, cursing himself for letting someone get past him, for falling asleep so deeply, before skidding to a stop by the large bed. Elena was alone, lying in the middle of the mattress, the sheets tangled around her limbs as she thrashed around in her sleep. He stood motionless for a moment, unsure what to do. She was obviously having a nightmare, but he didn't know how to wake her without scaring her further. She chose that moment to scream again, only this time he heard the word behind it. "Damon!" The sound of his name slipping through her lips jolted him into action, and he kneeled on the edge of the bed, gently taking hold of her shoulders. "Elena," he said gently, shaking her slightly. "Elena, it's okay, you're just dreaming." She thrashed around again, one of her arms hitting him across the face. "Elena!" He shouted, taking hold of her face. "Elena, wake up!"<p>

Elena's eyes shot open and stared up at him for the length of a heartbeat, before she launched herself at his bare chest. "Damon! Oh God... I thought...you...he..." she stumbled incoherently.

Damon shushed her, stroking her hair down her back as he felt hot tears drip onto his shoulder. _What terrible thing had she dreamed he'd done this time? _He thought to himself, wincing as his mind ran through the litany of atrocious deeds he had committed since knowing her. He sighed and continued to pat her back, trying really hard not to think about how her body was pressed against his, how her hands were trembling against his bare back. After a while, her breathing slowed, and he listened to her heartbeat as it returned to its usual rhythm. He leaned back from her to look in her eyes. "Okay now?" He asked her, rather pathetically, as he smoothed her hair away from her face and ran the pads of his thumbs across her cheeks, collecting the tears that had fallen.

Elena nodded, and moved to settle back into the bed. As Damon turned to leave however, her arm shot out and she grabbed hold of his shoulder. "No! Don't leave. Please?" She asked quietly, not able to raise her eyes to meet his. Damon hesitated for a second, before moving to lie on the mattress, making sure to leave a sizeable gap between their bodies. Elena laid back down facing him, and let her hand drift towards his. Clasping his fingers between her own, she closed her eyes again and prayed that sleep would take her away again. She had been having the same dream every night for the past week, and she didn't know how to make it stop. Every night, she was transported back to the night of the sacrifice, and every night, it happened exactly as the actual night had, with one very real difference. Instead of Jenna standing in the ring of fire, it was Damon. Instead of Klaus plunging a stake through the heart of her beautiful aunt, he was plunging his hand into Damon's chest. And every night, just as the original ripped out his heart, she screamed Damon's name. The scariest part about the dream for Elena though, was the moment just after the life drained out of Damon's ice blue eyes. As the fire that burned within them died out, so did her senses. The wind continued to blow, but she could no longer feel it on her skin. The fires continued to burn, but she could no longer hear its crackling flames, could no longer taste the smoke as she breathed it into her lungs. The blood from Damon's heart held in Klaus's outstretched fist continued to drip to the floor, but she could no longer smell the iron in the air. And Damon's body continued to lie on the stone alter, but she could no longer see him. The world around her started to go black, as if it suddenly didn't exist anymore, because he didn't exist anymore. So she screamed his name, desperate for him to come back to her, because there was no world without him in it. She usually woke up not long after, and she would sit in her bed, trying to sort through her jumbled emotions. Then she would get up, because sleep wouldn't come for her again after that. With Damon lying next to her though, where she could hear his breathing and could feel his fingers between her own, she found to her surprise that she could sleep again, and she soon drifted off into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

><p>The sun was shining as Katherine stepped out of the airport, the slight chill in the air the only sign that autumn was setting in. She put on her sunglasses and flagged down a taxi, holding her precious cargo close to her chest. Giving the driver her instructions, she leaned back in the back seat, wrinkling her nose slightly at the smell of stale sweat and rotten food. Parisian cabs were definitely not one of the highlights of this city. As they drew closer to her destination, she saw lots of flashing lights, and she sat up to get a better look.<p>

"The police 'ave blocked the road, mademoiselle, I do not think I can get any closer." The driver looked at her nervously in the rear view mirror.

Katherine threw some money over the partition and opened the door. "No matter. I can walk from here." She set her bag over her shoulder, then began sauntering up the road. As she drew closer to the scene in front of her, she saw several news vans gathered outside a nightclub, along with an ambulance and several police cars. She strode straight up to one of the policemen keeping the crowd back, and soon she was slipping under the police tape and walking towards the alley. She took one look and turned away, irritation at war with something approaching queasiness. She had been too late. She took a deep breath, ignoring the police milling around her. Time to visit a friend. She smiled. She knew just where he'd be.

* * *

><p>AN: Right, so I have one more chapter after this to edit and put up, and then updates may become a bit more sporadic, unfortunately. I have RL work shouting at me (boo hiss) as well as kids demanding to be fed! I am aiming to get this fic finished by the time the hiatus is over though. There's going to be 22 chapters (I think), one for each episode in a season. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please review!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Phew! I didn't think I was going to be able to get this up tonight! I'm stuck in hospital at the moment with just my laptop, and this chapter has been just sitting ready to go on my computer at home. Thankfully, my wonderful husband transferred it onto a thumb drive for me, so I could get it up for you all tonight (love you sweetie x). I'm hoping this'll work, because internet on one of those portable dongle thingies is just awful, so fingers crossed. A big thank you to everyone who reviewed and/or favourited my story, while I'm stuck here in hospital, I keep reading them over and over, you have no idea how much they're helping me through this! Hugs and kisses to you all! i hope you enjoy this next installment :)

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><p>The sun was setting, giving the warehouse a strangely peaceful look as Alaric paced up and down the main room. They had found eight coffins, two in each of the locked side rooms. One by one, the group had wheeled the coffins out into the main body of the building and lined them up side by side. The sunset glinting off the polished wood gave the room an ethereal look, incongruous against the contents of these boxes. Tyler and Caroline had dashed back to her car, collecting the rest of the vampire's stash of blood bags from her trunk. As Alaric turned to pace back alongside the line of coffins, he saw them coming back. They weren't hurrying, and he didn't blame them; none of them were sure exactly what was going to happen. Alaric noticed Jeremy standing quietly by the big bay doors, his gaze trained on the floor. As Caroline and Tyler approached the warehouse, he stood straight, looking over at the coffins.<p>

"We ready to do this?" The boy asked the rest of the group.

Alaric blew out a breath, then nodded. "Let's open them up." They each moved towards a coffin; as if on some inaudible cue, they all pulled open the top half of the lids, propping them open before moving on to the next one. Alaric sighed down at the body in the second one he had opened. Inside was a young girl, no more than 12 years old. She looked fairly peaceful, despite the dagger that was sticking out of her chest.

"Got him," Jeremy's voice sounded out through the warehouse. As the others moved to converge on his coffin, he opened the other half of the lid. They all looked down at the nearly-dead vampire. "Okay. So, we all know the plan, right?"

Caroline stepped closer. "You all step back, and I pull the dagger out." She eyed the dagger apprehensively. "Then I guess we wait for him to wake up."

Alaric pulled a couple of vervain grenades out of his bag and placed them on the floor next to the coffin, along with Caroline's remaining blood bags. Then he stepped backwards, away from the original vampire and out into the dying sunlight, Jeremy following him.

Tyler stepped closer to Caroline, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I'll stay here with you." He said decisively.

"No, Tyler, it's too dangerous." Caroline's eyes flicked over her shoulder at the werewolf, before looking back down at the body in the coffin.

"If it's too dangerous for me, then it's too dangerous for you," Tyler said shortly. "We can wait until Damon comes back, he likes putting himself in dangerous situations."

Caroline laughed slightly, then turned to face him. "We need to do this now, Tyler. He might have information that Elena might need." She placed her hands on his chest and looked deep into his eyes. "I can do this. I'm the only one who can do this. Ric and Jeremy will be a temptation for a starving vampire, and you are a werewolf, his natural enemy." She leaned up on her tiptoes and placed a kiss on his cheek. "I've got this." She pushed him away from her and he staggered backwards slightly, caught off guard. He reached out his hand, brushed her cheek lightly with the tips of his fingers, then moved to stand with the others.

Caroline turned back to the coffin, then slowly reached her hand in and grasped the handle of the dagger. Glancing over her shoulder briefly, she saw the three of them standing out in the open, Jeremy and Tyler holding a stake each, and Alaric with his crossbow at the ready. She nodded once, then gripped the dagger firmly, pulling it out of the vampire's chest with one smooth motion. "Here we go."

* * *

><p>The first thing Elena noticed as she slowly roused from her deep slumber was how incredibly comfortable she was. In fact, she didn't think she had ever woken up this comfortable in her entire life. At first, she thought that that was exactly what you would expect, waking up in a bed in one of the most fabulous hotels in the world, but then she realised that it wasn't that at all. Instead of her head resting on a pillow, it was laying in the crook of an elbow, the back of her head leaning against a chest behind her. It wasn't the sheets that were keeping her warm and cosy, but the warm body that was pressed against her back. And then that was the second thing she noticed. At some point in the night their bodies had migrated closer, and now Damon's warm body was spooning her from behind, one of his pajama clad legs lying across her own bare ones. His arm was curled protectively around her waist, his fingers lying against her bare skin, where her top had ridden up during her sleep. The third thing she noticed was that she didn't mind. She wondered if she should be feeling at least some uneasiness at their closeness, but it was as if her heart was too peaceful to be bothered with speeding up. And then the fourth thing she noticed suddenly made its presence known, as it pressed into her buttocks. She tried hard not to think about why her heart chose this moment to start beating faster, and not in anxiety, and tried to shift away slightly. She realised immediately that this was the wrong this to do. She heard Damon moan softly in his sleep, as his arm clamped tighter around her waist, pressing her even tighter to the lower half of his body.<p>

"Um, Damon?" She whispered. He gave another sleep filled moan in answer, and she felt his hand start to move. Her relief quickly turned to shock as his fingers slid up from her stomach and caressed her ribcage. She couldn't move, and she tried to tell herself that it was because she was scared, and not because it felt good. His hand travelled up further, his fingers whispering over her skin, and she bit her lip involuntarily. She was jolted out of the moment as his fingers swept across the underside of her breast, and she stifled a yelp at the jolt of electricity that shot through her, settling low in her stomach. "Damon!" She shrieked suddenly.

Damon woke immediately, his head coming up from the pillow and his eyes darting around the room for the source of the threat. Finding nothing, he looked down to the girl lying in his arms. She watched him as his eyes searched her face for a moment, before settling on his hand, still resting underneath her top. He stared for a brief moment, before yanking his arm back with superhuman speed. He pulled himself away from her, sitting up in the bed, the movement causing the sheet to fall away from him, leaving the evidence of his morning arousal on obvious display. His eyes darted to her, then down to his pajama covered erection, and he yanked a pillow from behind him onto his lap. As Elena watched colour seep into his cheeks, his mouth opening and closing like a goldfish as he struggled to find words, she found herself starting to laugh. He shot her a glare, but it only served to bring her laughter on to a full on giggling fit, and she turned over in the bed to stifle them in her pillow. He just looked so mortified and bewildered, and so incredibly _human_, that she couldn't help it. Her shoulders shook with the laughter, and as she giggled into her pillow, she realised vaguely that she hadn't laughed this hard in so long. Her first good night's rest in over a week had obviously done her some good.

Just as she thought she had got her giggling under control, she heard him speak for the first time.

"Glad to see I amuse you," was all he said, but it was enough to bring the giggles back again.

"I'm sorry," she gasped out between giggles, her voice still muffled by the pillow.

"Don't feel sorry for me," he said, "that would lead to all sorts of things..." he trailed off.

Elena frowned into the pillow. She didn't understand what he meant, and she had heard that telltale sign that he was smirking. She raised her head and looked at him questioningly.

"After all, the last time we were in bed together and you were feeling sorry for me," he leaned ever so slightly closer to her. "You kissed me."

That shut Elena up. "Wh-what? I didn't-"

"Mm-hmm," Damon smirked at her, then got off the bed. "I'm going to go take a shower."

"Better make it a cold one!"

Without turning, he whipped the pillow he was still holding over his shoulder. Elena gave a muffled shriek as it hit her full in the face.

* * *

><p>Damon paced up and down the length of the salon, trying hard to block out the sound of water coming from the bathroom, as well as the images of Elena in the shower that were running through his mind. He grimaced to himself as he thought back to the events of this morning. He should never have stayed in that bed with her, he knew that. He knew he should have eased away from her as she slept, but the feel of her hand clutching tightly to his had lulled him to sleep before he could bring himself to move. He had been dreaming about her – he always dreams about her – so he guessed it was inevitable that he would reach out for her in his sleep. He couldn't let himself lose control around her like that again though. The need to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless was strong enough at the best of times, but when she was all sleep filled and confused like she was this morning, it was damned near impossible to resist. As usual when he had a moment to himself, his mind went back to the last time they had been lying in bed together. He tried to swallow back the twinge of hurt as he recalled what she had said when he brought it up earlier. <em>Had she really tried to deny the fact that she had kissed him?<em> That really hurt, he couldn't help it. He knew that it hadn't meant as much to her as it had to him, knew she only did it out of pity for the poor dying vampire that had just laid bare his soul. But for her to try and deny that it even happened? That would mean that she regretted doing it, felt ashamed, maybe even that she hadn't wanted to do it in the first place, and only did it out of some kind of misplaced obligation. The thought of her feeling that really stung.

Hearing the shower switch off, Damon shook his head to dispel the thoughts and turned back to his laptop, where he had been searching the online French newspapers for potential leads. As he moved to sit down, he heard a whisper of movement coming from the other side of the door to the suite. Turning his head sharply in the direction of the door, his eyes fell upon a piece of paper lying on the carpet just inside the door, before he saw a shadow moving away from their room. He was up and through the door to the hallway in a flash, but whoever had been there was quicker. He heard the telltale ding of the elevator doors as they closed. He thought briefly about running down the stairs to catch whoever was in the lift, but then thought better of it. He couldn't leave Elena up here on her own; for all he knew, this could be a ruse intending for him to do just that. He didn't think anybody knew they were here, but the damned girl just seemed to attract trouble no matter where she was, so he wasn't going to take any chances. Wishing for the hundredth time that morning that he hadn't brought her along, he stepped back into the suite, picking up the small piece of paper as he did so, shutting the door behind him.

Elena heard the front door open and close, and came out of the bathroom to investigate. Combing through her wet hair, she walked through the bedroom and into the salon. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped as she noticed Damon standing by the door, looking down at something in his hand, his face looking paler than usual. "What is it?"

Damon started at the sound of her voice, and then shoved the paper in his back pocket. "Are you ready to go?" He asked, grabbing his leather jacket.

"Uh, sure, I just need to put my shoes on." Elena frowned slightly at Damon as she grabbed her sneakers and put them on. "Damon, what's going on?"

Damon was busy looking through one of their bags, pulling out a couple of stakes and a vervain syringe and putting them inside his jacket. "We have a lead to follow. Come on, we have to move quickly." Elena nodded, grabbed her bag and walked through the door that Damon held open for her. He looked at her face discreetly as they left the room, and saw what he knew he would find. Hope that they would find Stefan was rising on her face, and dread curled up into a hard ball in his stomach. _How the hell was he going to explain this to her?_

* * *

><p>The sun had fully set about half an hour ago, making Alaric even more uneasy. He had stopped staring through the bay doors into the warehouse a few minutes ago, letting his eyes dart around the vacant warehouse district. Now that night had fallen, there was always the chance that any vampires Klaus had stationed near here would come to investigate the earlier commotion. He kept a wary eye out, his crossbow at the ready.<p>

Caroline had stayed by the open coffin, her hand still clenched tightly around the dagger. Hearing shuffling sounds behind her, she whirled to find Tyler edging slowly closer to her. "Tyler!" She admonished him, resisting the urge to stamp her foot, just. "I told you to keep away!" She made shooing gestures with her hands, but stopped abruptly as she noticed his gaze had flicked over her shoulder. She heard a faint creak coming from the wood coffin, and whirled back to face the vampire now sitting up amid the satin folds. "Ric!" She breathed, edging back slightly. Caroline had heard the stories about this particular vampire from Elena, and she was suddenly very concerned for her neck.

The original vampire carefully pulled himself out of the box, glancing down at the small pile of blood bags by his feet. He straightened, then looked over at Caroline, his gaze flicking down to the dagger still held firmly in her grip. "I assume I have you to thank for my awakening?" He asked her, smoothing a hand through his hair. Caroline nodded jerkily, and let out a shuddery breath. He looked around at the rest of the small group surrounding him, his eyes falling on the older man with the crossbow. He nodded his head in greeting. "Alaric."

Ric walked forward a few paces, his weapon still pointed in front of him. "Elijah."

* * *

><p>The cab stopped a few blocks short of the address Damon had given the driver, unable to go any further. As he and Elena exited the car, the noise and commotion from a few streets ahead of them filtered down to them. Elena could hear the occasional shout, but Damon could hear almost everything from where he stood. Elena grabbed his hand as they started moving forward. He was tempted to shrug her off, the hurt still present even with everything that was going on around them. As they got closer to the crowd however, he gripped her hand back a little harder, not wanting to get separated from her, especially now. He pushed his way through the crowd of people, the sounds of pain and protestation not even registering with him, as he made his way to the length of police tape, Elena following in his wake. He ducked under the tape, turning to help Elena through, seeing her eyes widen as she took in all the activity.<p>

A police officer came up to them, his chest puffed out as he attempted to push them back behind the line. "La police seulement, s'il vous plaît pas en arrière, Monsieur..."

Damon grabbed the man by his chin, and looked him deep in his eyes. "Nous nous sommes détectives de la police, vous nous donnera accès complet à tout." The man's gaze went vacant for a moment, before nodding slightly. He waved his hand in the direction of the police cars and ambulances, and Damon moved in that direction, pulling Elena along behind him.

"What did you say to him?" She whispered, looking around at all the activity going on around her.

A man in a tyvek suit, complete with paper booties walked past them, and Damon changed direction to follow him. "I told him we were detectives, and to give us access." As they got closer to the source of all the commotion, Damon's vampire senses suddenly kicked in, and he stopped abruptly. Turning to face Elena, he let go of her hand, only to grab her gently by the shoulders. "You're not going to want to see this," he began, ignoring her look of irritation as she narrowed her eyes. "But, I don't want to leave you on your own, so I'm going to have to take you with me. Just," he sighed, knowing it was pointless to even ask but needing to anyway, "when I tell you not to look, please do as I say?"

Elena blew out a breath. "Whatever it is, I can handle it, Damon."

Damon sighed again, but turned back to the mouth of the alley way. From where he was standing, he could smell iron, suggesting that a lot of blood had been spilled near here recently, along with the bitter acidic smell of someone's lost breakfast. If the scene at the end of that alley had caused a seasoned cop to empty his stomach, he didn't think that Elena would handle it at all. He closed his eyes briefly as they walked up to another cop who was watching the comings and goings of the different personnel. "We're here to inspect the crime scene," he said to the guy in French. The man looked in his eyes for a moment, before nodding and moving aside to let them pass. They walked down the brightly lit alley, the large portable lights that the police crime scene unit had erected bringing the normally dark and dingy corners into stark relief. Damon heard a scrabbling sound at his feet and looked down to see a rat running in front of him, obviously scenting a meal. He curled his lip at the thought. He hated rats. As they got closer to the end of the alley, they saw at least three workers, all dressed in crime scene suits, all bent down around a bundle of dirty rags on the floor.

"Are we done here?" He heard one guy ask.

"Yeah. Let's get the stretcher down here and get... her to the morgue."

"You sure it's a 'her'?"

"Hell, I'm not even sure it's human. Come on." The three men picked up the equipment and started to walk past them, not sparing either of them a glance.

As the men cleared out of the way, Damon could see exactly what had caused such a scene out on the road. His stomach rolled. He had seen an awful lot of devastation in his time, hell he'd even created a lot of it, but nothing prepared him for what he saw in front of him. The woman – he assumed it was a woman – had straggly blond hair, most of it coloured dark red as it lay in a pool of congealed blood. The scalp had been separated from the top of the skull, leaving a gaping hole where bone could be seen. The eyes had been gouged out. The nose had been split in half down the middle, and the mouth had been slit open at either side, each cut stretching across the cheeks to the ears. The throat had been cut, so savagely that Damon could see the cervical column and parts of the spine. It only got worse from there. The body had been sliced downward from the sternum to pubis, and intestines and other organs spilled out of the gaping wound. There were no legs, only bloody stumps where the thighs should have been. The amount of blood surrounding all the wounds told Damon that the victim had been alive for much of what had happened, but even that wasn't the most disturbing part, for him anyway. What turned his stomach the most was the ragged cuts. No knife had been used in this attack. The murderer had used his teeth.

He felt movement behind him, and swore softly as Elena ducked out from under his protective arm and looked down on the carnage herself. He watched as her eyes locked on the scene in front of her, as the blood drained from her face, and her eyes widened and her lips parted in a silent "Oh!" He grabbed her just as her knees gave out from under her. "Elena," he called, trying to get her attention, "Elena! Look at me!" She couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from the sight in front of her, she was frozen in shock. He grabbed her chin in his hand and turned her face towards his. "Elena!"

She looked up at him then, the horror and terror clear in her chocolate brown eyes. She shook her head once, twice, opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Damon swept his arm under her legs and carried her swiftly out of the alley, only putting her down on the ground once they were back on the other side of the police tape. She leaned heavily on him as he flagged down a taxi, and didn't protest as he bundled her into the backseat. As they drove back to the hotel she was completely silent and still. Damon pulled her out of the taxi and helped her through the front doors of the hotel, into the lift and down the hall to their suite. He opened the door and placed her on one of the couches, before going to the mini bar and pouring them both a drink. He placed the glass of bourbon in her hands and helped her bring it to her lips. After the second sip, she shuddered, and some colour crept back into her face.

"Was... Was that..." She shuddered again. "What was that, Damon?"

Damon slumped back in his seat, unwilling to answer her. He closed his eyes and tried to block out the image that had remained stuck in his mind since leaving that damned alleyway.

"Damon?" He sighed, then lifted his head to look at her. Her eyes searched his cobalt blue ones for what seemed like an eternity, before she suddenly started to shake. "No," she said, shaking her head violently. "No! He... he wouldn't, he couldn't... No." She looked at him, her gaze desperately pleading with him to agree with her. When he didn't, she started breathing rapidly, rocking slightly in her seat. Damon reached out for her, and she shot up from the couch, her drinking falling from her hands and landing with a muted thud on the carpet. "NO!" She screamed, putting a shaking hand up to him, before covering her mouth with it. A split second later, she sprinted for the bathroom, and Damon heard her emptying her stomach into the toilet.

He stayed where he was for a few minutes, until the heaves died down and turned into sobs. He couldn't bear her crying; every time he heard it, it was like a piece of his heart broke at the sound. He followed her into the bathroom, crouching down behind her as she sat huddled over the toilet bowl. His hands fluttered by her shoulders for a moment, before gently smoothing her hair down over her back. She turned slightly towards him. "Are you sure?" She whispered.

Damon blew out a breath. "I smelled him all over the place there, Elena," he replied quietly. "I'm sure. It was Stefan."

* * *

><p>Klaus heard the front door opening, and he turned to watch as Laverna walked over the threshold, two enormous suitcases following closely behind. "Nice to see you've managed the art of packing sparingly, my dear."<p>

Laverna rolled her eyes as she sauntered over to him and put her arms around his neck. "I'll have you know there is a purpose for every single item I've brought," she said, touching her lips lightly to his.

"I'm sure there is," Klaus murmured, smirking slightly. He had first hand knowledge of Laverna's penchant for role play. "Stefan!" He exclaimed, as the younger vampire sauntered into the room. "Are you done packing?"

"Are you going to tell me where we're going?" Stefan drawled, sitting down next to a young girl on the sofa.

"You'll see when we get there," Klaus replied airily, before commanding his servants to take their bags outside to the waiting car. "Finish the girl, Stefan, we have a plane to catch." He slung his arm over Laverna's shoulder and walked out the door.

Stefan reached over to the girl and snapped her neck quickly. He wasn't hungry. Then he got up and followed the vampire and vampire-witch couple.

As they slid into the back of the limousine, Klaus noticed a flash of curly dark hair across the street. He smiled to himself. It wouldn't be long before Stefan's brother caught wind of where they had gone and followed them. Then his plan could really start to take effect.

* * *

><p>Damon left Elena in the bathroom to freshen up, and poured himself another drink, pacing the length of the salon as he drank.<p>

"There's one thing I don't understand," Elena came into the room and stood before him. "How did you know to go there this morning? The news vans were still there when we arrived, there wasn't time for them to write a report for you to find."

Damon slid his hand into his back pocket and pulled out the slip of paper he had placed there earlier. He passed it to Elena wordlessly, letting her read it for herself.

Elena frowned down at the paper in her hand. There was an address, presumably the place they had just been to written down, with an added sentence after it. _They'll be going to London next._

Elena looked up at Damon. "Where did this come from?"

"It was shoved under our door while you were in the shower," Damon stopped his pacing, knowing the question that was coming next.

"Do we know who wrote it?"

Damon turned slowly back to face her, nodding slightly. As she continued to look at him, he blew out a breath. Locking his gaze with hers, he confessed. "It was Katherine."

* * *

><p>AN: So, that's it, six chapters that I've had written for a while now. Any more updates on this story will be a bit more sporadic, as I will have to actually write them this time! Like I said before, if the interest isn't there, then I won't continue to bore everybody, but if the interest is there, then leave me a review and let me know!

Also, just to let you know, I've started working on an AU/AH fic, called "Thinking of You". If you're interested, check it out, I have no idea if it's any good or not!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Ok, I'm sorry, I know this is later than I promised, but I had a few issues with this chapter. I was going to write another flashback, and have it be about Damon when he was in the war. However, I soon discovered that my british education has left me woefully lacking any clue of the American civil war, so I had to go away and think about a different flashback I wanted to write. I was inspired however, and I'm actually really pleased with how the flashback came out, so I hope you enjoy it. Also, Klefan have arrived in London by the end of this chapter, and I have so much to say about the city (being a Londoner myself) that I was worried I would bombard you all with far too much information. I'm now a little worried that I leaned too far the other way, but I've tweaked and tweaked until I got a headache, so I've given up, and you all can be the judge of how well I did!

And, that was a massive author's note, so I'm just going to shut up now! I hope you guys enjoy it.

* * *

><p>Alaric sighed deeply as he let himself into the Gilbert house. He didn't love the idea of letting Elijah stay in his apartment, but the vampire needed somewhere to stay, and he was certain that Damon wouldn't like it if he'd taken the original to the boarding house. The guy would absolutely lose it if something happened to the rugs in that place.<p>

The house was quiet; Jeremy had obviously already gone to bed. Ric pulled out the pile of bed linen he kept in the corner of the room, turning the television on low as he made up a bed for himself on the couch. He took off his boots and settled down on the pillow, thinking over the day's events.

Elijah had remained his usual collected self as he drained the blood bags, his complexion quickly regaining colour. The group had watched the vampire as he slowly made his way along the line of coffins, placing his hand briefly inside each one.

"Don't you want to wake them up?" Caroline had asked tentatively.

"I do," Elijah had replied, not taking his eyes from the young girl that Alaric had found. He stroked his hand through her hair, before turning to face her. "However, I would like to know what has happened in my... absence, so that I can give them all the information they will need."

"You've only been dead a week," Jeremy piped up.

"Perhaps, but I'm sure my dear brother has created at least one major incident in that time, has he not?" Elijah straightened out his suit, fingering the hole through his shirt where the dagger had been. "What has he done?"

"We don't know," Alaric answered, "He left Mystic Falls the night after he stabbed you. We think he's in Europe."

Elijah looked up sharply. "Let me guess, he took Stefan with him."

"How did you know that?" Caroline asked, surprised.

"Because he'll need him in order to execute his plan," Elijah turned and started closing the lids to all the coffins, shutting his family members away again. He lingered once more over the young girl, before closing her in softly.

"What plan is that?" Alaric asked, hoping to finally get some information.

Elijah dodged around the answer. "Klaus was in London in the 1880s," he nodded his thanks as Jeremy started pushing the other coffins back into the side rooms. "He was looking for something there. Stefan was there too."

"No he wasn't," Caroline spoke from the other side of the warehouse, where she had just placed the last of the coffins. She shook her head. "I asked him once if he could help me write a paper, he said he'd never been to Europe. He told me he'd stayed in America his whole life."

Elijah looked down at the blond vampire, and she sucked in an unconscious breath. "He was most certainly there, I saw him."

"Then, why would he tell me he'd never been there?" Caroline asked, confused.

Elijah walked out of the warehouse, pulling the bay doors shut. "It would seem that Stefan lied to you."

* * *

><p>Damon concentrated on his laptop in front of him, trying to ignore Elena as she fidgeted in the seat beside him. Elena had not been impressed that he had taken a lead from Katherine, glossing entirely over the fact that her vampire look alike had been right. She had followed him around the suite as he'd packed their suitcases, peppering him with questions, sighing with irritation whenever he couldn't, or wouldn't, answer her.<p>

"How does she know they'll be going to London?" She stood behind him, her arms crossed in front of her.

Damon averted his eyes, trying not to notice how the stance emphasized her breasts. "She's been following them," he said, slamming the suitcase shut and stalking past her into the bathroom. "She probably heard them talking about their next move."

"Why is she following them?" Elena followed him, determined to talk about something, anything, to get her mind to stop replaying the scene in the alley. "She knows Klaus wants her, shouldn't she be on the other side of the world, instead of skulking round corners, listening in on his conversations?"

"Because that's what Katherine does, Elena," he turned around, his hands full of Elena's cosmetics, nearly colliding into her. "She follows Stefan."

Damon rolled his eyes as he threw the bottles into the open vanity case, Elena's obvious jealousy hurting more than he'd like. _That's right, Elena, have a cat fight with Katherine over who gets to keep the insane brooding vampire who's currently out _ripping_ people to shreds. Meanwhile, I'll still be here to tend to all your general butler needs. _He ripped the case shut with more strength than he meant to, and the zip broke in his fingers. He threw the suitcase out of the door, grabbed his jacket and pulled Elena by the elbow out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him. In no time at all, he had them both situated in a taxi, on their way to the airport. He compelled their way onto a flight leaving to London, and they were now buckled into first class seats, waiting for the plane to take off.

"How did you know it was her who shoved the note under our door?" Elena turned to him now, asking the one question he had hoped wouldn't come up.

"I recognised her hand writing," he shrugged dismissively, but he knew Elena wasn't fooled.

She narrowed her eyes at him, putting her hand on her hip. "Now tell me the real reason."

"Hmm?" He tried to act as though he wasn't paying attention, but he could feel the faint blush in his cheeks that gave him away. He could feel her gaze on the side of his face as she continued to look at him, and it wasn't long before he caved. "It smelled of her perfume," he muttered finally.

He waited for the suppressed smile, or for the pitying look she gave him whenever his previous infatuation for Katherine was the topic of conversation, but to his surprise, neither one came. He saw activity out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see her shredding the piece of paper that Katherine had slipped under their door into tiny little pieces. Then she threw them into the pocket of the seat in front of her and turned to look out of the window, a small frown on her face. _That was weird,_ Damon thought to himself.

The plane started moving, and Elena clenched her fingers around the armrest again. She really wasn't sure that she liked flying. As soon as the plane reached its intended altitude and the seat belt sign flicked off, she turned to Damon. "Tell me another story," she pleaded, desperate for some kind of distraction from the horrific images still plaguing her mind.

Damon closed his laptop and settled back in his seat. "Well, there is this one good story, I think Stefan was about twelve-"

"No," she interrupted suddenly. "I can't... It's just..." She shook her head. It just felt... wrong, listening to a story of a sweet and innocent boy, when she had just seen evidence of the evil he was capable of. "Tell me a story about you. Please?"

Damon blew air through his lips. She knew he didn't really like talking about himself, but she needed this. "Well... I remember this one time, back in the 1950s I think –"

"No," she interrupted again. "A story from when you were human." She watched him closely, noting how his entire body froze at her request, and she wondered whether she had pushed him too far this time. Talking about his time as a vampire was one thing, even if she knew that he didn't really like to think about the time he spent with his emotions switched off, blinding himself for a love that was never real to begin with. But through all the time Elena had known the brothers, while Stefan talked about his childhood often, she had only ever heard Damon make one or two vague references to his time growing up. She had the feeling that the young boys had been treated very differently growing up, and she suddenly found herself wanting to know why.

Damon looked at her steadily, his eyes moving over her face as he pressed his lips together in thought. After a moment, he nodded, sat back in his seat and began his story.

* * *

><p><em>Summer, 1848<em>

"_Come on, Damon! We don't have all day!" His mother called to him quietly. She walked into his bedroom and found the eight year old struggling with his breeches. Laughing to herself, she went over to him and helped him pull them up, tucking his shirt in and pulling his braces over his arms. "Now, put your boots on quickly, so we can get to the stables." She whispered, listening for the sounds of footsteps on the stairs._

_Her son nodded his dark head and sat on the floor, pushing his feet into the leather boots. "Mama, why are we whispering?" He asked, looking up at her._

"_Well... because we don't want to wake your brother now, do we?" She leaned forward and ruffled his hair. It wasn't the main reason, but Maria wasn't going to let her son know that._

_Damon nodded and then stood up, grabbing her hand as he pulled her out of his bedroom door._

"_Remember to walk on your tiptoes, so nobody can hear the sound of your boots on the floor," she said as they made their way quietly down the stairs._

"_Would Stefan hear us if we didn't?" her little boy asked her._

_Maria eased open the front door and slipped through, pulling Damon behind her. "Yes, and because he loves you so much, he would cry if he heard you leaving." She made her way over to the stables, where two horses stood waiting for them. She nodded to the stable hand, who picked Damon up and seated him on top one of the horses, before coming round and helping her into the saddle. Once they were seated, they took off at a slow trot, Maria hoping the sound of the horses' shoes on the cobblestones wouldn't travel as far as the house._

_Once they reached the fields, they picked up their pace, Maria laughing out loud as the treasured feeling of freedom fell over her. She raced Damon to the old oak tree, watching as he slid down from his mount and started to climb it. She smiled at his antics, determined not to think about the trouble there would be if the boy came back with his clothes soiled. They played in the woods and raced across the fields for hours, until they came across the waterfalls. Maria dismounted and tied their horses to a nearby tree, and then removed a picnic basket from the saddle bags. As she laid down a blanket and set out the food, she kept an eye on Damon as he edged closer to the falling water. "Be careful, my love!" She called to him. "Come and have some lunch!"_

_Damon stepped back from the crystal clear liquid and came to sit by his mother. She smiled as she watched his blue eyes widen at the sight of the feast in front of him. She had been preparing for this day for a long time; she had made sure to bring all of his favourite foods. Damon picked up a chicken leg and bit into it, the juices running down his chin. Before Maria could help him, he picked up a napkin and cleaned himself. She smiled at her fastidious little boy. Even as a baby, he had never been a messy eater, and so teaching him table manners had been an easy task._

_When they had both eaten their fill, they lay back in the afternoon sun, playing a few games of cards that Maria had brought with them. Damon giggled as he kept winning – because she kept letting him – and her heart expanded with love at the sound. Her darling boy didn't laugh nearly often enough._

"_You, my love, are going to make some woman a wonderful husband, you know," she commented, as he held out his hand and helped her to stand up._

"_Ew, Mama!" Damon exclaimed, and Maria laughed at the horrified expression on his face._

"_Trust me, my darling, there will come a time when you won't find the idea of girls quite so unappealing. Now, if you promise to be very careful, you may go and take a closer look at the falls, before we leave."_

"_Do we have to go home, Mama?" Damon asked her, his blue eyes sparkling the same colour as the summer sky. "I have enjoyed today so much."_

"_So have I, my love," Maria smiled, "But we must go home eventually, or we shall be missed. Now go, quickly."_

_Maria watched as her son ran down to the waterfall, holding onto a vine as he leaned over to push his hands through the water. She wished she could give him a day like this every day, but it was impossible. She loved Stefan, after all how could she not, she had felt him growing inside of her for nine months, but it was a different kind of love than what she felt for her first born child. She couldn't help but recoil slightly whenever she looked into the green eyes of her baby, that looked so much like his father's. She couldn't help but think about how Stefan wasn't a product of love as she nursed him. Unlike Damon. She had been pregnant with him when her first husband had suddenly past away from consumption. Guiseppe had offered to take her in, promising to raise the child as his own if she would consent to be his wife. Not having many other options, she had agreed, hoping that some day she would love him even half as much as she had loved her dear Thomas. As soon as Guiseppe saw her son for the first time, saw those eyes that were the spitting image of his father, the cold look on his face had told her all she needed to know. Her husband would never accept Damon as his own, and she could never love her husband because of it._

_As she watched her son run around the spray from the waterfall, she decided she didn't feel too guilty for loving one son more intensely than the other. Damon needed her love more. He had his father's eyes and her hair, his father's passion for things and her own desire for freedom. He was full of sincerity and acted upon impulse. He loved with passion and recklessness, and when he gave his heart to something he did it fully and completely. He was all these things already and he would become so much more, and Maria knew that these attributes could get him hurt if she wasn't around to protect him._

_She sighed and called to him, giving him a lift into his saddle. They made their way back home in comfortable silence, returning at a much slower pace than they escaped._

"_Thank you, Mama," Damon said quietly as they reached the gate. "I have had a wonderful day."_

_Maria looked at her son. As soon as she had fallen pregnant, Guiseppe had insisted she stay in the house. Once Stefan had been born, she had begun to see less and less of Damon, and she suspected Guiseppe had ordered the servants to keep them separated as she nursed his new born son. Slowly she had gained the confidences of a few servants, and together they had arranged for her to spend this day with her eldest child. A small ball of fear lodged deep in her belly as she thought about how her husband would react upon their return. _

_Feeling suddenly desperate, she turned to the boy riding his horse beside her. "Listen to me, my love," she said, and Damon looked up at her. "I want you to promise me something. Promise me that whatever happens, you won't let life consume you."_

_Damon frowned. "What do you mean, Mama?"_

"_I mean, no matter what hardships you suffer, no matter what ups and downs life throws at you, you'll remain the same. You stay the same innocent, passionate, impulsive boy that I know you to be. Will you promise me that?"_

_Damon was still frowning, but he nodded. "I promise, Mama."_

_They arrived in the stables, where the stable hand was there waiting for them. Maria took her son by the hand and led him across the cobblestones. Before they reached the front steps however, she stopped and bent down in front of him, placing her hands on his shoulders._

"_I would like one more promise," she said._

"_Is this going to be about girls?" Damon asked warily._

_Maria smiled at him. "Yes, and I want you to promise me anyway, no matter your current feelings on the subject. "When you fall in love, I want you to give the girl every part of you, do you understand? Let her see the good sides as well as the bad, let her into your heart and allow her to search every inch of it. You and I, we are passionate creatures, but if we are not careful this very nature can burn both ourselves and the people we love. You have to give her time to come to terms with the force of your passion, for it can be overwhelming and frightening, but if you give her your heart fully, in time she will see just how wonderful it is to be loved by a man such as you. Do you promise?"_

_Damon looked at her, his blue eyes serious. "I don't think I could ever love a girl as I love you."_

_Maria pulled his close and hugged him tightly. "And I love you, my love, never forget that. No matter what."_

"_I promise, Mama."_

_She kissed his forehead and stood up, and together they walked up the steps and pulled open the door. Maria felt the tension before she saw him, standing in the shadows by the study door._

"_Where have you been?" Guiseppe demanded coldly. "Your son needed you here with him."_

"_And my other son needed me outside with him." Maria replied, refusing to look cowed in the presence of her impressionable boy. She placed her hand on Damon's head and leaned down. "Go to your room, my love, I shall be up in a moment to tuck you in."_

_Damon nodded and headed for the stairs without a word to his father. As he rounded the corner he looked back over his shoulder, his eyes locking with Maria's for a moment. She lifted her chin at him slightly, and he nodded, silently acknowledging to uphold the promises he had given her._

Elena listened as Damon described the day he spent with his mother. Stefan had been too young when she died to remember her, so she hadn't heard much about the woman before.

"It was my favourite day," Damon said now, smiling distantly. "The best day of my human life."

Elena watched as the smile on his face turned wistful, before disappearing as a brief look of pain flashed across his features. "What is it?"

She saw him shake his head and open his mouth, and Elena knew he was going to tell her it was nothing and try to change the subject. The thought that he was going to shut her out after getting such a brief glimpse into the boy behind the man was crushing, and she reached out to him, gently stroking her fingers down the side of his face. "Tell me, Damon."

Damon took a deep breath. "It was my best day," he repeated. "Everything about it was perfect, right until the very end. But while it was my best day, it turned out to be _her_ last."

Elena gasped softly. "What happened?"

"I've never known for sure," he said, looking at her evenly. "But I think my father killed her."

* * *

><p>Stefan hadn't noticed anything unusual about England as they exited Gatwick airport. Evening had begun to fall as they had arrived, and the night time traffic had snarled up the large road that was called the 'M25'. The taxi Klaus had commandeered inched forward in the queue for what seemed like hours, before turning onto a smaller road heading into the capital city. As they made their way to Russell Square, Laverna looked out of the window, ooh-ing and aah-ing at the sights of Big Ben, the large clock, and The Houses of Parliament. Stefan supposed he should feel awestruck by the sights of London, but he couldn't muster up the interest. His gaze kept being drawn to the river Thames whenever the road they were on drew near it. Every time he caught a glimpse, he would stare at the murky brown water. He felt as though he had seen something like it before, but it was as though the memory was hovering just out of reach.<p>

"Something wrong, Stefan?" Klaus's voice came from next to him.

Stefan frowned. "I feel... I feel like I've been here before," he said, before shaking his head and laughing at himself. "It must be some other disgusting looking river I've seen."

Klaus looked at his female companion sitting across from him in the taxi, and they shared a smug smile. He was starting to remember. Maybe they wouldn't need the other Salvatore after all.

They got to the hotel, and Klaus compelled the receptionist to give them the entire upper floor for as long as they needed it, and the three vampires were soon ensconced in a large suite, with a couple of the staff as pre dinner snacks.

Stefan was feeling restless. He paced up and down the length of the room, pausing each time he passed the windows. He kept looking down on the streets below, watching the cars, taxis and buses as they moved in a constant stream. He felt trapped, like he was being kept from something important. He needed to be down there, on the streets, not up here in the confines of these four walls. As he looked down, he saw a woman with blond hair turn suddenly on the crowded pavement and duck down an alley way.

"I'm going out for a walk," he announced decisively to the room.

Klaus took his fangs out of a young girl's thigh and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Really? And you think I'm going to let you just wander off on your own, Stefan?"

"I'll be back," Stefan replied absently, looking over his shoulder through the window again. "I just... there's something I need to do."

A gleam came into Klaus's eyes as he heard that, and a glimmer of a smile graced his lips. "Well in that case, you'd better be off, my friend." He said, and gestured towards the door. He watched as Stefan left the room without another word, his steps hurried. "Follow him," he said, his eyes still on the closed door. Laverna got up from the couch and quietly followed the younger vampire.

Stefan exited the hotel and crossed the street, earning a few car horn honks and glares from drivers. He found the alley that the girl had disappeared into, and followed her in her footsteps. Of course, she was long gone by this time, but he could smell her presence on the still night air, and he closed his eyes, breathing it in. After a moment, he turned and came back out of the alley, but as he stood looking up at the hotel, he decided he wasn't ready to go back in. He looked up and down the road, taking in the many bustling restaurants and decided to take a walk. He wandered down the length of Russell Square, and came to a cross roads. He looked to the right and saw many people heading in that direction as they bustled off to the various plays and musicals that were playing in the many theatres down Drury Lane. He would be sure to get a satisfying meal if he walked in that direction; the darkness of the theatres would provide a veritable buffet for a vampire. But Stefan felt that was the wrong way, and before he could ponder why such a feeling would come to him, his feet pulled him in the opposite direction, and he kept walking. He walked for almost an hour, passing subway stations and bus stops, museums and colleges, shops and restaurants. He kept walking, thinking about nothing except the growing feeling that he had walked these streets before, until he saw something that stopped him in his tracks. He stood gazing up at an old sign that was hammered into the side of a building. He had seen that sign before. He had stood in this exact spot and looked up at this sign before. He read the name of the road on the old sign, that feeling of an almost memory burning in him stronger than ever before. _Whitechapel Rd._

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><p><em><em>A/N: Okay, I've got a cookie ready for whoever can guess where I'm going with Stefan's character! I'll try to update it as soon as I can, promise. I hope you liked it, and please review!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I'm sorry this took so long to upload, but my other fic has been shouting in my ear to be written, and I just couldn't concentrate on this one. Chapter 8 is finally done though, and I'm hoping to get more written soon. Oh, and just to let you all know, while the characters are in London, we might meet a few characters that talk in a Cockney accent. As a Londoner myself, I am well versed in this weird language, so if you all come across stuff you don't understand, please PM me, and I'll be happy to explain! At the moment I've got a bunch of notes, and I'm typing away furiously in an effort to turn them into actual chapters, LOL. Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing, and cookies to **Merlin, Hotpatutie, Jellicoe** and **Scarlett2112** for guessing right! We're really getting into Stefan's dark phase now, although he doesn't turn up in this chapter. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this installment, and please review!

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><p>It was dark by the time they exited the airport. Damon grabbed their luggage and made their way outside to find a taxi, Elena's hand placed firmly in his. She had started doing this all the time now; as soon as they had to move anywhere, her small fingers would curl around his own, and she would let him lead the way. Somewhere deep inside, he hoped that it was because she was beginning to trust him, but he knew it was probably just because she was scared. Inside, he cursed himself for the slight spark of hope, and for the way her hand in his made him feel. On the outside though, he merely squeezed her fingers occasionally, trying to reassure her.<p>

He found a black cab idling by the curb outside of the airport, and he made his way over, suitcases in one hand, Elena's fingers in the other. After stowing the luggage and giving the cab driver directions, he settled back in the seat, pretending he didn't notice that she was still gripping his fingers, holding them against her thigh. She had been silent throughout their time in the airport, and he watched her out of the corner of his eye as she stared out of the window. He knew she was thinking about the story of his mother she had made him tell her on the flight; every so often he caught her flashing him looks of sympathy, as compassion etched her face. He winced inwardly every time he saw her doing it; this was why he didn't like talking about his past. He didn't deserve her sympathy, and he certainly didn't want it. He wished now that he had chosen any other story but that one to tell her. He sat in the back of the taxi, wracking his brains to come up with a different moment he could have revealed, one that had been happy, without an overtone of sadness. After a while, he realised that there weren't many, at least, not from when he was human. He hoped she wouldn't ask him to tell her anything else. This was what he hated most about his love for her. He would give her anything she asked, it was as though he was incapable of denying her anything, even if it meant the cost of his own sanity. He looked across the darkened interior of the cab, watching as the passing headlights flickered over her features as she stared out of the window, bringing her beauty into stark relief. She had changed him so much. She was the reason he could sleep at night, the reason he could now look in the mirror without wanting to hurt the man reflected back at him. But if he wasn't careful, she would be his undoing. He just needed to get Stefan back, then he could get the distance from her, the distance he so desperately needed, but so desperately never wanted to get.

The taxi pulled up to the curb outside the hotel he had chosen. He figured it was the best place to be, as it was right in the middle of the city of London. He had been all over the world since his time as a vampire, going back to his favourite places over and over again, but he had only visited London once. Standing on the pavement, the memories of the last time he had been in this bustling city washed over him, leaving a sour taste in his mouth. He had hoped he would never have to set foot here ever again, but here he was, with exactly the same agenda; find his brother, and take him back home.

"You want me to bring your bags in for ya, mate?" The taxi driver asked, as Elena stepped out of the car, looking around her in wonder.

"No, thank you," Damon replied, grabbing the suitcases himself and shoving his hand in his pocket, searching for his wallet. He paid the driver and he sped off, looking for another fare.

Damon turned to face the hotel, and once more felt Elena's fingers slide around his own. He sighed briefly, feelings of contentment and resentment vying for dominance inside him as her touch worked its way through every nerve in his body.

"Where are we?" She asked in a small voice, as they stepped into the lobby.

"Russell Square," Damon said, moving towards the reception desk. "I figured being in the middle of the city would be as good a place as any to stay, while we look for... him." He almost said Stefan's name, but stopped himself just in time. Ever since France, the mention of his name brought a cringe of pain across Elena's face, so he had quickly learned to stop saying it. Anything was better than seeing her in pain.

He moved up to the receptionist and asked for a room, looking in his wallet for a credit card he could use. The cadence of the woman's voice made him look up sharply. As their eyes locked, he took in a deep breath, and found himself clenching his fists in shock. _Of all the hotels in this city..._

Elena gasped as his fingers gripped hers painfully hard, and he loosened his hold, using his thumb to rub apologetic circles on the back of her hand as he scanned the lobby of the hotel.

"What's wrong?" She whispered, her own gaze darting about in fear.

"The receptionist has been compelled," he whispered back, still not looking at her. "I think they're here."

"Here?" Elena gasped. "What... what do we do?"

"I have to get you out of here," he said, picking up the bags he had dropped on the floor. "If they pick up your scent-"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." A voice drawled from behind them.

Damon stiffened, then turned slowly, keeping Elena tucked slightly behind him. "Katherine."

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><p>It was late afternoon by the time Jeremy woke up. Staying up all night waiting for an original vampire to wake up did all kinds of things to his sleep pattern. Not that he slept much nowadays anyway. What was the point? Soon, he'd be sleeping for eternity. He lay in bed, looking at the ceiling but not really focusing. He could feel that <em>something<em> that told him there was a ghost somewhere nearby, but he really wasn't in the mood. It took so much out of him, pretending he was fine, to all the alive people at the moment, and he was relishing in the feeling of not having to keep up the facade for a while. Even around the ghosts, who all knew he'd be joining them shortly, he felt the need to act okay with it all; he couldn't stand the look in his mother's eyes whenever he slipped and she caught a glimpse of his true emotions. He couldn't deal with that as well. He had to stay focused on the task at hand. He had to make sure that Elena would be safe once he was gone. He owed her that after everything she had done for him. He owed to his parents, and to Aunt Jenna and Uncle John. And he owed it to Bonnie too.

The doorbell rang, and he sighed. His moment of peaceful solitude had come to an end far too soon, but he knew he needed to do this. He heard Alaric open the door, and Bonnie's voice floated up to him as he went to the bathroom and brushed his teeth. By the time he returned, his girlfriend was sitting cross legged on his bed, surrounded by books. He walked over to her, scanning the titles as he approached the bed. There was an even mix of history books and magical grimoires, ready for their task this evening.

"Hey," Bonnie said to him, leaning in to give him a kiss on his cheek.

He smiled at her. A part of him was desperate to just dive in to her, to forget about everything that was going on around them so they could spend as much time together as he had left. The other part of him wanted to withdraw from her, the pain of being so close to everything he knew he could never have almost unbearable.

"Alaric said he was going to go see Elijah." She continued, as she moved some of the tomes so he could sit next to her. "I grabbed everything I could think of that might help us," she gestured at the pile of books. "What exactly are we researching tonight?"

Jeremy picked up one of the history books and looked at the table of contents, hoping inspiration would jump out and grab him. "I thought, maybe I could look up Klaus's history, maybe see if we can work out what he wants, while you look through those grimoires, maybe see if there's anything that could kill a hybrid?" He hoped he didn't sound too much like he was grasping at straws.

"I think 'unkillable' is kind of the whole point of being a hybrid," Bonnie said, searching through the pile of spell books. "I doubt I'll find anything in these."

"No, but maybe you can find something we can use that will take away his... invincibility, or whatever." Jeremy flicked through the pages of the book on his lap idly. It was one of Isobel's research books. It held a lot of information on the originals. The woman had been a great researcher.

"True, I'll have a look for something like that. Maybe I can find a spell similar to the one the original witch put on him to repress his werewolf side. One that doesn't need the sacrifice of a doppelganger this time." She rolled her eyes. "I don't understand why they would do something like that in the first place. A witch is supposed to uphold the balance of nature. Why would they do something that would require the blood of an innocent?"

"Maybe the original Elena look alike wasn't innocent," Jeremy mumbled.

"Maybe we should try to find out? Knowing about her might help us find out a few things about Klaus."

"Hopefully Elijah will have something interesting to tell Alaric."

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><p>Alaric stood outside his apartment door, trying not to think of the irony of his situation. He raised his hand to knock, but decided against it. <em>Screw politeness<em>, he thought, inserting his key and opening the door.

Elijah sat on the brown leather couch, a book in his hand and a sheaf of loose papers stacked neatly in a pile on the coffee table in front of him. He had changed into a clean suit. Alaric briefly wondered who his tailor was, before deciding he didn't really want to know. Give him jeans and a plaid shirt any day of the week.

"Alaric," Elijah stood as he greeted his temporary landlord. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Alaric just looked at the vampire for a moment, slightly stunned, and not a little pissed off. "We need to talk." He said shortly, moving to his liquor cabinet in search of some scotch. "We didn't pull the dagger out of your chest just so I could sub let you my apartment. For free," he added, a little mulishly. He grabbed two glasses and a bottle of bourbon, turning and shaking the drink in Elijah's direction in invitation. The vampire nodded in his direction.

"Thank you," Elijah said, accepting the tumbler of amber liquid and taking a measured sip. Then, he looked up at Alaric. "I'm sorry about Miss Sommers," he said quietly. "She was a nice woman. I liked her."

Alaric nodded, trying to remind himself that at the time of her death, Elijah had still been on their side, and so was not to blame.

"I know you want revenge," Elijah continued, but Ric stopped him.

"No," he said, his voice strident in the otherwise empty apartment. "I _want_ Elena to be safe. For us all to be safe. That is not going to happen until your brother is gone."

"I understand," Elijah nodded, looking through Alaric as he thought back to his previous actions. "I was a fool," he whispered to himself, before looking at Alaric properly. "I was a fool to think my brother would honour his promise to me," he said. "I am sorry for the part I played in the plan's failure. I will do whatever I can to rectify the situation, and make sure that my brother brings no more harm to the people you care about. You have my word."

"Not to be rude, but your word doesn't mean much anymore. Not that it meant very much to me in the first place."

Elijah nodded. "I understand. I can only promise you that I now have no further need to betray your group. Klaus has lost his only hold over me, now that I know where my family are."

Alaric moved over to his couch and sat down. "Okay then," he said. "I guess we have a truce. For the time being."

"I concur." Elijah joined him on the sofa, placing his glass down on the table, before picking up the book he had been reading. "Now, what can I do for you? I assume you came to visit me for a reason?"

Alaric opened his mouth to retort that, actually, this was his house and he could come here any time he damned well pleased, but the sound of his phone buzzing stopped him. He picked it up and saw a text message from Jeremy. He read it quickly, then turned to the vampire. "I want you to tell me everything you know about the original witch. And the original doppelganger."

"I can only tell you about one of them," Elijah said, placing his book on the table and folding his hands in his lap.

"Why?"

"Because there _is _only one of them. They are one and the same."

* * *

><p>Klaus entered the gate of St Olave's cemetery. Laverna had called him after following Stefan on his night time wander through his memories and told him to meet her there. Looking through the trees, he spied candle light flickering in the light breeze and walked towards it. He came upon Laverna, sitting on the grass next to an engraved headstone.<p>

"What are we doing here, my love?" He asked, crouching down beside her and giving the witch a kiss on her cheek.

She smiled at him as she turned to look at him, sliding her arm around his waist. "I've found her." She pointed at the grave, stretching her hand out lovingly, to caress the indented name on the headstone with her fingertip.

Klaus read the faded name, hope flaring in his chest. _Rose Mylett._

"Are you sure this is her?" He asked, needing to be sure. He had been searching for decades for the name of the ripper's last intended victim, only for Laverna to find it in a matter of hours. She truly was remarkable.

"I'm positive," Laverna replied huskily, her dark hair glowing in the moonlight. "I can feel her energy. She is the one."

"Well then, we'll need to talk to her." Klaus clapped his hands together, the sound echoing through the empty graveyard. "Do we know where Stefan is?"

"I left him at Whitechapel," Laverna said, pulling a trowel out of her bag, along with a ceramic jar. "He started to remember some things, but then left on a hunt."

"If he's starting to remember, do we need to do this?"

"He may start to remember some of the things he did the last time he was in London," the witch started digging into the ground on top of the old grave, searching for fresh earth. "But the effects of the spell are eternal. He won't remember what you need him to remember unless we lift the spell." She opened the jar and poured in some of the dirt. "And to lift it, we need to talk to the witch who cast it." She stood up, placing the jar back in her bag. "I have what I need here for the moment. We'll need to come back when I am ready to perform the ritual."

"Excellent." Klaus stood and slung his arm around the petite brunette's shoulders. "I fancy something to eat. Maybe, Chinese?"

"Ooh, I haven't visited Soho in an age!" Laverna skipped as they wandered back towards the gate.

"Then let's go," Klaus twirled her round and they set off, both of them looking forward to eating a Chinese person.

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><p>"What the hell are you doing here, Katherine?"<p>

Elena was sitting on the double bed in their room, hugging her knees to her chest in an effort not to get up and slap the other woman in the room. She knew the vampire could break her arm before she even got close enough, but the urge was still there; it was always there whenever she was forced to breathe the same air as that bitch.

Damon was pacing the length of the room, clearly not comfortable with being in the same hotel that Klaus was staying in, and pointedly ignoring the glares Elena kept giving him. She didn't blame him for being agitated, she was herself, but she still didn't see why he had decided to let Katherine up into their room. Anything she had to say to them could be said over the phone. From thousands of miles away, preferably.

Damon suddenly stopped pacing and stood in front of Katherine, who was lounging on the sofa across the room. "Well? Answer me, Katherine."

"Oh, no need to get your panties in a bunch," Katherine drawled, a smirk teasing the edge of her lips. It grated on Elena, the sound of someone else speaking in _her_ voice, but not, lacing it with a touch of cruelty that Elena could never imagine herself using. She hated it.

"Spit it out, Katherine, or we're done here," Damon said as he started pacing again. He was full of nervous energy. He hadn't been able to settle down for even a moment since they had arrived at the hotel. Katherine had convinced him to stay, had assured them that both Klaus and Stefan were out, and that by the time they returned, the scents of all the other humans that drifted in and out of the lobby would mask Elena's own distinctive one. Damon hadn't been convinced, but he'd also acknowledged that the damage had already been done. Even if they had turned and walked straight back out, her scent would still have been there. Still, he had been cautious, making her walk through all the halls on all of the floors, before carrying her up a flight of emergency stairs to their room. She knew he didn't think it was cautious enough.

"Oh, fine," Katherine said. "I'll tell you everything you want to know. But first, I'm hungry. Can we send for room service?" She fluttered her eyelashes at Damon, and Elena rolled her eyes. Then she turned to glare at Damon as he walked towards the phone.

Instead of dialling down to reception however, Damon searched in his bag and pulled out a blood bag, tossing it over his shoulder, where it landed at Katherine's feet.

"Are you kidding me?" Katherine picked up the bag between her thumb and forefinger, looking disgusted, and Elena hid a smirk of her own behind her knees.

"Drink up and then start talking." Damon sat down on the edge of the bed, conveniently placing himself between Elena and both the door _and _Katherine. Elena wondered where he had managed to pick up such strategic manoeuvres. In the war, she supposed. She made a mental note to ask him. He had been quite forthcoming with stories of the past recently, and she was enjoying the closeness that this had brought between them. She tried hard not to think about why that should matter to her.

Katherine drained the blood bag quickly, wrinkling her nose at the lukewarm temperature. "Where would you like me to start?" She asked, in a fake cheery voice.

"What does Klaus want? And why does he need Stefan?" Elena spoke up for the first time since they had entered the room.

"Are you sure you're really all that bothered?" Katherine asked, leaning to the side slightly to catch Elena's gaze. "You two seem awfully cosy together, what with the one big bed in all the nice hotels..."

She smirked, and Elena made a move to get off the big bed, but stopped when Damon reached out, placing a hand on her thigh and squeezing gently. _Don't let her get to you,_ the touch said.

"Answer the question Katherine." Damon bit the words off, and Elena knew he was fighting the urge to find something pointy and wooden to stake her with. Elena smiled smugly at the thought of watching him do it. Or better yet, doing it herself. "Or don't you know?"

Katherine sighed theatrically, and straightened her perch on the sofa. "Fine. Klaus wants to create an army of hybrids, like himself. He wants to eradicate the world of normal vampires, as some kind of revenge." She looked up at Damon, one eyebrow raised, waiting for him to comment. When he stayed silent, she continued. "There's something he needs. A medallion, I think, that has magical properties, in order to create more like him. That's what he's looking for here in London."

"And why does he need Stefan?" Damon asked coldly.

"Because Stefan is the one who hid the medallion, back in the 1880s."

"How do you know that?" Elena asked, not entirely sure she understood what any of this meant.

"Because she kept tabs on him," Damon filled in for her, not taking his eyes off the other vampire.

"So did you," Katherine replied with a smirk. "It made my life quite a chore, having to dodge you while watching out for Stefan at the same time. It got quite tiresome." A cruel smile took over her face, and the urge to slap her overcame Elena all over again.

Damon ignored the barb. "I was here, looking for him then. I found him and took him home. I don't remember him saying anything about any kind of medallion."

"That's because you caught up with him after he hid it. And because he can't remember doing it." Katherine shrugged.

"What? Why wouldn't he remember doing it?"

Katherine sighed, as if the whole thing was completely obvious, and they were both just being thick. "Do you remember the night you finally found him?"

Damon was still for a moment, then he nodded. "It was just before Christmas, 1888."

"December 20th, to be exact." Damon shrugged, and Katherine leaned forward. "The woman who you found on top of him? About to stake him? The woman whose neck you wrung to stop her?"

Damon nodded, and Elena saw the faraway look in his eyes as his mind travelled back to that night.

Katherine smiled. "She made him forget. She was a witch."

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><p>AN: So there we go, we finally find out why Klaus needs Stefan, and what he needs him to remember! I hope I did the characters' voices okay, I had a bit of trouble with this chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and please review!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: OMG, everybody, I am soooo unbelievably sorry it has taken me so long to update this story! I promise I AM going to finish it, it's my first idea for a DE fic, so it's kind of like my baby! I just suddenly had a lot of other ideas push their way into my head, and I couldn't concentrate on this one until I had got them all out! I hope you can forgive me for the hugely long wait? Anyway, here it finally is, and I hope you enjoy it!**

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><p>Turning around in a circle, he lifted his face up into the slight summer breeze that wafted down the darkened street. If he kept his eyes closed, he could almost smell the scents from over a hundred years ago, from the last time he had stood in this spot. The putrid smell from decomposing food that slunk from out of the alleys, mingling with the scents of old perfume, rotting teeth in unclean mouths, filthy clothing covered in soot and the daily grime that came with living in such an overpopulated city. All those smells rolled together, forming an acrid scent that overpowered everything else; everything else that is, except the pervading smell of sex. It leaked out of brothel doorways, oozed out of alleys, lingered in shop door fronts; if you stood on the streets for too long, by the time you arrived home the stench would be embedded in your clothes for weeks afterwards.<p>

But the place had changed now. Gone were the brothels, with their shifty looking men loitering outside. The buildings were no longer covered in soot from the chimneys, the streets no longer littered with rubbish, of either the perishable or the human variety. The streets were no longer pitch dark at night, the alleys were now lit up with the orange fluorescence from the electric street lights. The people who used to converge on street corners, or lurk in shop doorways, were gone now, replaced by people with suits and briefcases, walking swiftly with cell phones stuck to their ears. He wouldn't find what he was looking for here anymore.

He sighed, thinking about what he should do now. Maybe he would go back to the hotel, find out what Klaus was doing with his little witch friend.

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><p>Elena watched as Damon tried to wear a hole in the hotel carpet as he paced the length of the suite. She was hungry, she was tired, she was heartsick, and above all, she didn't understand what was going on. As soon as Katherine had started talking about a witch, Damon had stiffened on the bed next to her. He had tried to pretend like there wasn't something bothering him, but Elena could tell. She knew all of his masks by now. After that, he and Katherine had started speaking in some kind of code, ignoring all of her questions about what was going on. Then Katherine had left, muttering under her breath about trying to find a real meal, not a plastic one. Although Elena was glad the vampire had gone, the atmosphere in the room was ramping up her tension to almost unbearable levels. Damon hadn't said a word to her in over an hour, and she had given up trying to make him talk to her a while ago.<p>

She sighed, and leaned over the bed to grab the hotel phone. She might as well deal with one of her problems.

"What are you doing?" Damon's arm flashed out to grab hers as she picked up the receiver. As she looked up into his face, she could see the same feelings she had etched across his features.

"I'm ordering room service. Humans do have to eat occasionally, you know."

Damon sighed, then slid his hand off her arm slowly. He nodded. "I'm going to go take a shower, will you order me something too?" He turned away from her and moved over to their bags, searching for some clean clothes.

"Sure. What do you want?"

She watched as his shoulders stiffened slightly, before replying, "Whatever. Surprise me." He walked into the bathroom without looking back.

Elena watched him go, torn between needing to know exactly what had got him suddenly so worked up, and giving him the space he needed right now. An idea came to her; if she marched into the bathroom while he was in the shower, she could trap him into telling her what was on his mind. Then her eyes widened and she blushed. That was really not something she wanted to do right now. She turned her attention back to the phone, trying to shake off the mental images that had just flooded her mind.

After ordering, she wandered around the room, peeking out behind the closed drapes at the bustling city below, watching as people made their way in and out of fine dining restaurants. Some of them looked as though they were headed home after a long day at work, but most looked very dressed up, like they were going to the theatre, or the ballet, or something like that. Elena sighed. She'd always wanted to visit London, but now here she was, stuck inside a hotel suite, with only a grumpy vampire and a constant state of worry to keep her company. She'd also always wanted to visit Paris too, but she knew that she would never be able to set foot back there again without remembering... She shook her head, not wanting that memory to surface. Just the thought of that made her feel sick, thinking of what _he_ had done to that girl.

There was a knock on the door, and she moved away from the window to answer it. Before she could reach it, the shower clicked off and Damon flashed out of the bathroom over to the door.

"Hide," he said tersely, and Elena did what he asked, too stunned by what she had seen to argue with him. He had obviously heard the knock at the door and vamp-speeded out of the shower to answer it himself, because he was still dripping wet, with only a towel slung around his waist. She had an insane urge to rip it off him. She clapped her hand over her mouth to stop the bubble of hysterical laughter from escaping her lips. It was all the tension. It was making her crazy. That was all this was.

Damon pulled the serving tray out of the young boy's hands and closed the door. Running a hand through his glistening hair, he placed the tray down on the bed, before looking up at her.

"Seriously? You were just going to open the door, without knowing who was behind it?"

Coming out of her hiding place behind the dresser, Elena tried very hard not to look at his naked torso. "I knew it was going to be room service."

"Because suddenly you're psychic?" Damon scoffed. "Goddammit, Elena, how am I supposed to keep you safe?" He walked closer to her, his eyes burning with intensity. "You promised me you would do this my way."

Elena sighed. "I'm sorry, okay? I promise not to open any doors in the near future." She nodded, and her eyes snagged on a bead of water travelling slowly down his chest. She cleared her throat and looked away quickly.

Damon seemed to notice for the first time his state of undress, and he stepped back quickly. "Just, be careful next time, okay?"

Elena nodded again, not looking in his direction until she heard the bathroom door close behind him again. She moved over to the bed and sat down, leaning back against the headboard as she picked up her plate from the tray. The bathroom door opened again, and Damon walked out. Elena let out a sigh of relief mingled with disappointment as she took in his pyjama bottoms and t-shirt. He sat down on the bed next to her and picked up his own plate.

Elena opened up her burger and checked for slimy green things as she shoved a French fry into her mouth. "You know," she mumbled around the mouthful, "you're going to have to tell me whatever's going on eventually, so you might as well just spit it out." She held out the offending pickle and he plucked it from her fingers, tipping his head back as he placed it in his mouth.

He leaned forward and fumbled through the sauce packets on the tray. "Trust me, you don't want to know this." He held out a sachet of mayonnaise for her, and she squeezed it all over her fries.

"I might not _want_ to know it, but I do _need_ to, Damon." She picked up the two cans of coke, handing him the diet. "I'm not that fragile, I can handle it. I promise."

He leaned over and snagged another pickle from out of her burger. "Elena, once you know this, you can't undo it. It's not something you should ever have had to know about."

"Tell me, Damon."

"You're not going to like it."

"Please, Damon," she took a bite out of her burger and looked at him. She watched as emotions vied with each other on his face, before he closed it down, replacing it with his mask of indifference.

"Do you know anything about British serial killers?" He asked finally, looking down at his plate.

Elena frowned at him, but thought about it. "Not much, just the famous ones. Why?"

Still looking down at his food, Damon shrugged his shoulders. "Which ones have you heard of?"

Elena took another bite of her burger as she tried to think up the names. "I think I only know one," she said around the food in her mouth. "There was Jack the..." She stopped speaking, a sick feeling growing inside her. She tried to swallow her mouthful of food, but it got stuck at the back of her throat and she choked slightly. Damon looked up at her finally, his face a mixture of defeat and guilt.

Elena tried to speak, but her voice came out as a whisper. "You used to call him Jack..."

* * *

><p>Alaric stared hard at the original vampire sitting before him. "The original doppelganger was the original witch?" He asked Elijah. Taking a gulp of the bourbon, he frowned as the liquid burned a path down his throat. <em>There're far too many 'original' things in this conversation.<em> He sighed. His head was already starting to hurt, and Elijah hadn't even started to explain his statement yet.

Elijah drained his own drink and placed the glass on the table between them, straightening his suit as he leaned back against the sofa cushions, looking for all the world as if he owned the place. Ric's frown deepened. "She is the one that turned us all into vampires," he stated calmly.

Ric sighed again, audibly this time. "Just tell me the damn story already, I don't really feel like playing any games today."

"Very well. I suppose I should start at the very beginning, so as not to confuse you." The corner of Elijah's mouth turned up in an almost smile, and Ric ground his teeth together. He leaned forward and poured them both another drink; he had a feeling he was going to need it.

* * *

><p>"<em>Father! Mother! Come quickly!"<em>

_Elijah stood up from where he was crouched beside the fireplace as the panicked voice of his younger sister floated into their house from outside. His mother glanced quickly at her husband, before picking up her skirts and hurrying to open the door, his father quick on her heels. Elijah stood frozen as dread crept up his spine. His sister Sarah wasn't known for being a calm creature, but still, he knew instinctively that something was very, very wrong. Only the sound of his mother's anguished cry forced his feet to move towards the doorway._

_As his eyes fell upon the sight before him, he almost collapsed to the floor. His youngest sister, Rachel, was lying on the ground in front of their home, surrounded by Sarah and their parents. From what little of her Elijah could see, her clothes were torn and bloodied, her usually golden hair stained a dark muddy red. He stumbled closer on shaky legs, as two of his brothers came running around the corner towards him._

"_What's happened?" Samuel asked, dropping to his knees beside his father, as David came to a stop next to Elijah._

"_It-it was... it was one of them!" Sarah sobbed out loud, tears pouring down her beautiful face as she clutched at her mother's shoulder._

"_Who?" Their father asked sharply, and through the haze of stunned grief, Elijah briefly wondered why he even bothered to ask the question. They all knew who had done this._

"_The-the w-wolves," Sarah breathed out, her words barely discernible over the sounds of their mother's continued sobbing._

_Elijah flinched as David pulled his sword from out of the scabbard at his waist, holding it aloft as he stared angrily into the distance._

"_Calm yourself, boy," their father snapped. "There is nothing we can do now. They will slaughter us all."_

"_I don't care," David seethed, gripping his sword tighter and taking a step in the direction where they all knew the danger lay._

"_No!" Elijah looked down at his mother as she gasped out the single word. Her hands fluttered over the lifeless body of her second youngest child, as if she was trying to find a way to fix her. After a moment, she settled for brushing the hair away from her young daughter's face, as she gulped hard, trying to stem her flow of grief. "No. I will not lose any more of my family." She turned hard eyes on her son, before levelling her gaze at her husband. "No more, William," she said firmly, "promise me."_

_William looked back at her for a moment, the need for vengeance warring with his desire to do whatever his wife asked of him. Finally, he nodded. "I promise, Alice," he whispered, stroking away the tears that were falling down her cheeks. _

_This wasn't good enough for Elijah. For too long, they had sat back and watched as people in their village were slaughtered once a month. Ever since the clan of strangers had settled a mere three miles away from their own settlement, their lives had been turned upside down. Laughter had been replaced with tears; joy with sadness; contentment with terror. Families barricaded themselves in their homes on the nights of the full moon; friends no longer trusted one another, and the sound of a baying wolf was enough to bring even the strongest man to their knees in fright. It had to stop. Through his haze of grief and anger, Elijah heard his father asking as to the whereabouts of his youngest son, and he saw his chance._

"_He went down to the lake to fish," he said, speaking up for the first time. "He probably fell asleep on the bank. I shall go and fetch him." Pausing only to stroke his mother's hair, he walked away from his family, unable to look down at the mangled body of his sister. _

_As soon as he had stepped far enough into the woods for the trees to make him disappear from prying eyes, he changed course. He was not going to go down to the lake; Niklaus would come home when he was ready. Elijah had a different destination in mind. Slowly, he picked his way through the tangled tree roots, pausing only occasionally to ensure he was headed in the right direction. The trees grew closer together as he waded deeper into the forest, and the world around him reduced to an inky blackness, the light from the rising full moon unable to penetrate the canopy of trees above him. Twice he stumbled to his knees, as roots tripped him up along his path. But he did not stop, did not try to turn back. Rage fuelled him onward, and he pressed forward, squeezing through gaps and chopping at vines in his path. Eventually, a vague light came to him through the branches, and he knew he was close. Twigs pulled at his clothing and his hair as he at last stepped out into a small clearing, in the very heart of the forest. A small house stood in the centre of the clearing; the wooden walls sinking into the earth, plants and weeds growing up around them, giving the sense that the small dwelling had grown out of the earth itself. Trees hugged three sides of the ramshackle building, leaning in close to the walls as though they were supporting them. A window had been carved into the front wall, and through it Elijah could see the gentle orange flickering of a fire. As he stepped closer, a door that he hadn't noticed was there slowly creaked open. He swallowed the dart of fear that raced through him and stepped into the doorway, looking for the person that had opened it._

"_Why have you come here?"_

_Elijah looked around the darkened room, his eyes adjusting to the dancing flames emanating from the fire in the middle of the earth floor. At first, he could see nobody, and fear darted through him once more. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned in that direction, all he could see was the play of shadows as they danced across the bare walls._

"_I asked you a question." The voice came again, and he whipped around to stare in the other direction. As he looked, a small figure, dressed in black skirts, seemed to materialise from out of the shadows. The small girl stepped closer to him, her face hidden by a curtain of thick dark hair that fell down to her waist. As she slowly approached him, she lifted her chin, and he found himself falling into her deep brown eyes._

"_I-I need your h-help," Elijah stammered, fear enveloping him as the rumours about this girl circulated through his head. This tiny young girl was in possession of some strange unknown power. Although he had not seen any evidence of this with his own eyes, Elijah could feel the energy flowing around her as she stood before him, making his skin tingle and the hairs stand up at the back of his neck. He didn't know whether he should make eye contact, and so he kept his gaze flittering around the room, never settling on anything, less she take it as an invitation to do him harm._

"_You can relax," the girl said, a small, almost shy smile forming on her lips. "I am only a servant of nature, I will not harm you. Unless, of course, you try to harm me."_

_Elijah let out a slow breath he hadn't realised he had been holding, and allowed himself to fully look at the girl for the first time. She was pretty, beautiful even. Her skin had a dusky glow upon it, as though she spent many hours out in the sunshine. Her tresses were thick and wavy, shining with life even in the dull light of the small house. Her deep brown eyes sparkled with intelligence and wit, but also innocence. Elijah found himself swept away in the depths of her gaze, and he blinked, trying to ground himself, and the memory of why he had sought this girl out flooded back into his mind, bringing with it the crippling pain of grief. With a gasp, he swayed on the spot, and before he knew what was happening, he found himself lying on the floor._

"_This is why you have come here?" The girl asked, as she knelt beside him. She held a damp cloth in one hand, which she used to wipe his brow, and reached out for his hand with the other. Her delicate face turned down in a small frown as her eyes closed for a moment. "I cannot give you what you seek," she said, shaking her head and looking down on him with compassion in her eyes. "Nature has taken your sister for a reason, I cannot undo that decision."_

_Elijah gasped slightly at the realisation that she somehow knew what had happened. "How did you...?"_

_She smiled slightly, as he raised himself into a sitting position. "Your grief is written all over your face, Elijah. It is there for anyone to see."_

"_How did you know my name?"_

_The girl said nothing, only smiled slightly again as they both got to their feet. "I am sorry, but I cannot help you."_

"_But you can," Elijah said, reaching out for her arm. "That's not... That is not what I came here to ask."_

_The small frown appeared again, as she looked at him curiously. "Then why?"_

"_I want a way to protect my family, my home." Elijah said, standing up straighter. "I want you to help me find a way to do that. These... creatures, they cannot be fought. Even when they are not in the form of a wolf, they are stronger and faster than even the most able man. We cannot fight them. We cannot protect ourselves from them."_

_The girl looked at him for a moment, and he watched as she chewed on her bottom lip in thought. Then, she slowly nodded. "There may be a way I can help you," she said finally. "However, there will be consequences. Are you certain you want this?"_

_Elijah nodded firmly, looking deep into her eyes. "We have to be able to protect ourselves."_

"_I will see if I can find a balance." She nodded again. "Come to me tomorrow, and we shall see what can be done."_

"_Thank you," Elijah said, and turned towards the door. He stopped as he reached the threshold and looked back. "You know my name. May I enquire as to yours?"_

_The girl smiled shyly at him. "My name is Lily."_

* * *

><p>"So, are you telling me that <em>you<em> were the one who got your family to turn into vampires?"

Alaric sat in his chair, his drink all but forgotten as he listened to Elijah's story.

"Well, it was Lily who changed us, but yes, I was the one to facilitate it." Elijah pulled himself out of his reverie and looked across at the vampire hunter sitting across from him. "I don't know how she managed to do it. When I met with her the following day, she asked me to bring personal items from each of my family members. I did so, and she called upon the power of the earth to give us abilities to fight the werewolves." The vampire stood and walked to the window, standing in the sunlight.

"At first, my family were pleased with what I had done, and as a group we went out and slaughtered as many wolves as we could find. It was only after, that we found out the consequences."

Alaric waited for more information, but Elijah seemed to have drifted off into his memories again. "You mean the consequence of being blood thirsty vampires?" He prompted.

"Among others. Surprising though it may be to you, the idea of immortality was not as pleasing to us at that time, either."

Alaric tried to sort through what he had just been told. "Okay, so this girl Lily was the original Elena look-alike. But then why was a clone of her needed for the ritual?"

Elijah continued to look through the window, his glass still in his hand. "When the situation with Niklaus came to light, Lily decided something had to be done." He turned back to face the room again. "She sacrificed herself."

* * *

><p>Damon watched as the blood drained out of Elena's face, and instantly he wished he could have found a better way to break the news to her. The food dropped from her hand as she bolted for the bathroom, not even having time to shut the door behind her before throwing up the meagre contents of her stomach. He hesitated for a fraction of a second, before getting up and following after her. As he knelt down behind her, he stroked his hands through her hair, pulling it away from her face, as she continued to heave.<p>

His vampire hearing easily picked up on the hitches in her breathing, as she tried to stifle her sobs, and as always when Elena cries, he felt something ripping in his chest. He wished he could turn back time and work out a different way of telling her the truth. He wished that there was an easier way of hearing that your boyfriend was a historically famous serial killer. He wished Stefan had had the guts to tell her the truth about his past himself.

Anger at his brother swelled within him, and he put all of his concentration into holding back Elena's hair and stroking his hand down her back, in an attempt to stay in control of his emotions. Another time and place, and he would have been off snapping necks and draining people dry as an outlet for his rage. Hell, another time and he probably wouldn't have been so angry, more like impressed, glad even, that his brother had decided to become interesting for a change.

But now, now Damon was stuck. Stuck feeling angry with Stefan, and stuck with no way to release his anger. Most of all, he was stuck loving this girl who could never, _ever_ feel the same way about him.

Elena reached for a towel and dried her face, before turning slightly to face him.

"We'll get him back, Elena. I promise."

She looked up at him, and as he held her gaze, for the first time since Stefan had gone he saw doubt reflected in her eyes. He just wasn't sure what it was she was doubting.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So there we go. Just so you know, I picked any old names for the originals, but I picked Lily especially. Elena means "Shining Light", and Lily means "purity, beauty, innocence". Did you know Katerina also means "purity"? I literally laughed out loud when I saw that! Mind you, I guess that was why Stefan thought of her as "pure" (eyeroll). Anyway, I hope you liked it, and please review?**


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